A Story of Fists and Hearts
by ChaosEater69
Summary: Leon Williams is an eighteen year old martial artist who has just lost both his parents. After three months of grief induced seclusion, his uncle signs him up for the Interspecies Cultural Exchange program. The young American thought his life was hard when his parents passed away, he's about to learn the meaning of "complicated". I do NOT own "Daily life with monster girls".
1. Chapter 1

**I plan on making this my main story for a while so I'm taking a break from my "Gravity Falls" and ANOTHER break from my "Soul Eater" fic. I do NOT own "Daily Life With Monster Girls". Some of the species I will be using come from "Monster Girl Encyclopedia", which I do NOT own either. Also, I plan on adding more girls than just the first one mentioned but I haven't decided on what species to make them so if you have a suggestion, please leave it in the comments. Thank you!**

* * *

A Story of Fists and Hearts

Chapter 1

Leon Williams throws three quick punches against the heavy punching bag hanging from the ceiling of the large basement that serves as his workout slash training room. The eighteen year old martial artist backs up from the bag, bouncing on his toes before coming back with a round house kick, making the bag strain against its support chains. He grabs the bag to steady it, wipes his sweaty forehead against his forearm, and goes back to practicing against the bag.

"You should probably just move a bed down here, kid." Leon stops mid-punch as he hears the unmistakable voice of his uncle. Like Leon and his father, his uncle Sebastian has black hair and dark blue eyes, the only difference between the thirty-eight year old man and Leon being that Sebastian has longer hair that he keeps gelled back. Sebastian walks across the concrete ground of the basement, dressed in his expensive black suit, his favorite gold-plated watch circling his left wrist. "You need to get out more, Leon. You're slowly turning into a hermit."

Leon ignores his uncle's newest attempt to get him to be more sociable. Ever since both his parents passed away in a car accident three months ago, Leon went from a happy, normal young man and became an introverted, sulking shadow of himself. Leon had turned to his one outlet for his grief: material arts. Leon has been a martial artist since he was five, boxing, MMA, kick boxing, kendo, and a few others. He's also entered and won many competitions over the years.

"Come on Uncle Bastian, not today," Leon says breathlessly. He's tired of hearing his uncle telling him to get out and be social. He knows he should but he just…can't. He just wants to work on his fighting. Yeah he's won some contests and earned some titles but he's still got so much to work on. He doesn't care how long it takes, he'll get better, make his parents proud. Sebastian shakes his head and sighs heavily.

"I was afraid you'd say that," Sebastian says and Leon stops for a moment, his uncle's tone just now doesn't sound good, foreboding even.

"What did you do?" Leon asks accusingly. Sebastian runs his fingers through his slick-backed hair, giving Leon a close-lipped smile.

"You've heard about the Interspecies Cultural Exchange program, right?" Sebastian asks with an evil gleam in his eye. Leon knits his eyebrows together, of course he knows about the Interspecies Cultural Exchange program, he's known about it ever since the news about Extraspecies persons had been announced three years ago. He's even a fan of the all Extraspecies band, ANM48.

"Yeah, and?" Leon asks and Sebastian laughs.

"Well, since you're not going to get out, have fun, and act like a normal young adult, I am taking it upon myself, as your uncle, to make you. I made some calls and signed you up to be a host."

* * *

Leon pins Sebastian with a murderous glare as he fills out the four _teenth_ form for the Interspecies Cultural Exchange program. He had argued, pleaded, and even threatened his uncle for signing him up for this without his knowledge. Leon had even begged the program officials, saying that his uncle did this behind his back but the paperwork had been signed and filed and that was it. Leon is now a homestay for the program and there's nothing that he can do about it. Truthfully, he doesn't mind the idea of being a homestay. He's always had a small fascination with Extraspecies persons, he's had a fascination with other cultures of all kinds but since the Extraspecies persons are so new to the world they have been on one of his favorite subjects. He just wishes he had _chosen_ to be a part of the program.

"Thank you so much for joining our program, Mr. Williams. I can't tell you how much we appreciate it. There aren't many homestays in the U.S., unfortunately." Ms. Hilary says as she takes the stack of papers. The middle-aged, blonde woman takes the papers and taps them on the coffee table to straighten them, then accidently drops them and they spill over the table top and floor. Ms. Hilary lets out an _eep_ sound as she drops the papers and tries to catch them, only to make the mess worse. Leon, Sebastian and Ms. Hilary gather the papers and she quickly places them in her suit case to avoid another accident.

"Sorry about that," she says embarrassedly, closing her briefcase and clipping it shut. "I assume you have read the guide lines for the program?" Leon nods glumly, wishing he could knock his uncle out cold for this, but there's no point now. The rules are simple for the program: he must take care of his guest's needs, make sure they experience human culture, absolutely no violence between them, unless and only if it's part of contact sports or martial arts, always accompany them when venturing off his property, and absolutely no romantic activity unless given explicit permission from the agency. "Good. Now, I have arranged for your first homestay to arrive next week, I will also be your program coordinator so you and I will be seeing each other frequently before long." Leon cocks his head curiously at Ms. Hilary's choice of words.

"Um, 'first' homestay?" Leon asks.

"Oh, the agency can assign multiple homestays depending on the living conditions of the host. Obviously we're not going to turn your home into a hotel or something but because of the shortage of homestays in the U.S. we try to assign as many as possible. I hope that's okay." Leon looks to his uncle with an evil glare and Sebastian looks away with a sheepish smile.

"No, that's fine." Leon answers through gritted teeth, still glaring at his uncle. Of course it makes sense, Leon's family has always been wealthy. Leon's father and Sebastian had started their own business several years ago and it had steadily grown into a large empire. Leon's house is a large one: two stories, excluding the basement, six bedrooms, each with their own bathroom, a large kitchen, a pool in the back yard, and the house sits one several acres of land. Leon took ownership of his parent's assets after their deaths and his uncle is now his financial adviser, basically he's set for life.

Ms. Hilary nods in approval before standing up from the couch. "I will call you in a few days before she arrives. I think you and her will get along just fine, Mr. Williams. Her name is Sarojini Hǔ, a Jinko or Tigress as they're sometimes called. It was so nice meeting you and I look forward to working with you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, I did not mean for this chapter to be so long but that's how it came out. If anyone reading this wouldn't care I'd appreciate some feedback or even just comments. Also, if you guys want to suggest some species for future girls then please leave them in the comments and I'll see what I can do. Thank you!**

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Chapter 2

Leon exhales loudly as he turns off the vacuum cleaner. His two house keepers and himself have been polishing, vacuuming, and just overall cleaning the house for when Ms. Hilary and his guest arrive. After Ms. Hilary had left last week, Leon had started researching the different types of Extraspecies persons, especially Jinkos since one is going to be living with him. From what he could find they are a proud race that originate from the more remote parts of China and India. From what he's seen on the internet, Tigresses are very pretty; their hair is orange-yellow with black stripes running through it, just like a Bengal tiger, their skin also has stripes that are darker than the rest of their skin that pattern their entire bodies, just like a tiger. They are completely carnivorous, obviously, and they are very active and normally don't lounge around unless tired or sleeping. He also found that while they are very similar to tigers they are not very aggressive, though they do have predatory instincts, they prefer to refrain from violence unless absolutely necessary.

Leon wraps the power cord up before he pushes the vacuum back to the cleaning supply closet. As he closes the door he gets a call on his cell phone, a picture of his uncle appears on the screen and he answers it. "Hey Uncle Bastian," Leon answers in an agitated tone, he's still angry at his uncle for signing him up for the program without his knowing. Truthfully there's no reason for him be angry with Sebastian anymore, what's done is done, but he still can't believe his uncle would pull this kind of stunt.

"Hey Leo," Sebastian says through the phone, using Leon's nickname as he ignores Leon's attitude. "I was just calling to make sure you got the house clean for when your guest arrives."

"Yeah I just vacuumed the entryway. Martha and Janice are upstairs right now." The mother and daughter team have worked for Leon's family ever since he was a little kid. Both of them have the same mocha-tanned skin, silky black hair, and the same upbeat attitude. Martha has always been like a second mother to Leon, always taking care of him and worrying about him. Janice is more like an older sister but the two have never been extremely close.

"Good, make sure whatever room she takes has clean bed sheets and towels in the bathroom. I have a meeting after lunch so I probably won't be able to swing by till this evening. Maybe you can cook something or we can go out to eat?" Leon nods, not worried about the bedroom or bathroom since Martha, Janice, and Leon had cleaned all the guest rooms earlier that morning. He thinks about whether eating out or in tonight, eating out could be a good start for experiencing American culture. Though, after a long flight she might feel better just eating in.

"I think I'll cook tonight. I have some steaks in the freezer that should be good."

"Sounds good. I'll call you before I leave the office. See ya kid." Sebastian says and the call ends. Leon slides the phone back in his pocket and goes to the stairs to see how Janice and Martha are doing. He finds them in his father's old study. It's a medium sized room with a large bookshelf for one wall, a fireplace adjacent to it, and the opposite wall is a large window that looks out to the South Carolina country side that stretches out for a few miles. Martha is dusting the mantel of the fireplace while Janice is polishing the large mahogany desk that sits in front of the bookshelf. They notice him immediately as he walks in. The two are practically identical, only Janice keeps her hair cut short, just down to her shoulders, while Martha lets hers hang down to the middle of her back.

"Done with the entryway, Leo?" Martha asks and he nods with a soft smile, which she returns. Janice throws the damp rag she was using to polish the desk at him and it slaps him in the face.

"Did you purposely dress up like a lumberjack calendar model or is it just because you have a lady who's going to be staying for a while?" Janice asks teasingly. She's referring to his jeans and the button up, red plaid shirt that he's wearing. She often teases him about his looks and his body to embarrass him, saying that he looks like a super model. He's always had decently good looks: soft features, dark blue eyes, lightly tanned skin, and because of his martial arts training and exercise he's well-built and muscled. Leon laughs as he takes the rag and throws it back at her, only for her to duck and it smack the bookshelf behind her.

"Now now you two. We have work to do." Martha scolds them, her face amused. The three of them spend the next two hours cleaning the remainder of the house. After they are certain the house is presentable they treat themselves to an ice cream sandwich in the kitchen.

"We hate to leave you so soon Leon but Janice has a class later this evening and I promised to help at our church tonight. Will you be alright with this young lady by yourself?" Martha asks as Leon walks them to the front door.

"Yeah I'll be fine." Leon answers her, smiling warmly. She's the closest thing he has to a mother now and cherishes her. He also cherishes Sebastian, though he can be a pain, and Janice is the closest thing he has to a friend these days, he doesn't know what he'd do without them.

"Remember Leo, keep your clothes on or you might end up in a jail cell." Janice says with a laugh and his face instantly blushes, both him and Martha turning to the twenty year old with screwed faces.

"Janice please, such talk is not appropriate." Martha says as she starts to fan her face with her hand out of embarrassment but Janice only laughs at their reactions.

"Oh I'm just playing," she says as she shoves Leon's shoulder playfully and he returns it. Martha and Janice hug Leon goodbye and make him swear to introduce them to his house guest when they return the day after tomorrow.

"Bye guys." He says as they descend the steps down to their car before pulling out and driving down to the long drive way to the gate. As if on cue, Leon gets another call on his cell phone just as Martha and Janice's car disappears from sight. He sees it's from Ms. Hilary and answers immediately.

"Mr. Williams, I just wanted to let you know that Sarojini's plain just now landed and we should arrive at your place within the hour." She says with enthusiasm.

"Okay, see you soon. Oh, before I hang up," Leon starts, "Does Sarojini have any food allergies or anything? Or just things she can't eat?" He hears Ms. Hilary's voice in the background and another voice as well, their words too low to hear.

"She can have anything as long as it isn't raw fruits or vegetables. She can have foods with them mixed in like meatloaf or smoothies and stuff like that, but she can't have them directly." Leon nods in understanding.

"Alright, thanks. I'll see you soon." Leon says before he hangs up.

* * *

Just under an hour after their phone call, Leon hears the doorbell ring and quickly jumps from the living room couch and makes his way to the front door. As he opens the door his eyes go slightly wider as he sees his new house guest. Sarojini Hǔ is a full head taller than Ms. Hilary, which makes her only a few inches shorter than Leon; not an easy accomplishment when he's six feet and two inches tall. She's different from the pictures he's seen of other Tigresses, the biggest differences being her eyes and hair. Unlike the orange-yellow hair of the pictures he found on the internet, Sarojini's hair is pure white, the black stripes pattering her hair as it drapes down to just below her shoulder blades, a pair of round, furry ears sticking out of the top of her head. Her arms are also covered with white fur from her elbows to her hands and each of her fingers are tipped with a black claw. Her eyes are also a bright blue whereas the internet showed them having brownish-gold eyes. She's wearing a yellow tank top with a pink flower pattern printed on it, a pair of jeans that are cut off at her mid-thigh, and a pair of blue flip flops. Another thing that catches his eye is the stripes on her skin. Her skin is a smooth cream color that is patterned with stripes that are slightly darker than the rest of her.

"Mr. Williams, so glad to see you again. This young lady is Sarojini Hǔ. I think you two will get along very nicely." Ms. Hilary says. Sarojini Hǔ then steps forward with her hands folded in front of her as she bows her head in greeting.

"Thank you for allowing me to stay in your home, Master Williams. I hope to learn many things about your country during my stay." She says in a smooth, soft voice. Leon blinks as her words finally register in his head. He doesn't want to admit it but he was struck speechless by just how gorgeous this girl is. _She's like something out of a fairy tale,_ he thinks to himself. He mimics her bow and then offers a friendly smile.

"Nice to meet you, Sarojini. Though, you don't have to call me 'Master Williams'. Just call me Leon or Leo, I answer to both." He says, his voice slightly shaky from nervousness. Her mouth quirks up in a soft smile and he feels his cheeks start to blush instantly.

"Thank you Mas-, eh, I mean, Leon. If you'd like, you may call me Saro." She says, her face now a full, beautiful smile. Leon nods as he steps forward to take her luggage: two suit cases and a carry-on bag.

"I'll show you to your room and then how 'bout I give you a tour?" Leon says as he steps back inside and the two ladies follow him. He leads them inside and Saro finds herself awe struck.

"Your home is beautiful." She says, staring at the expensive looking rug, chandelier, and paintings that decorate the entryway.

"Thanks. The house isn't as big as it looks, not easy to get lost in either." Leon says as he leads them up the stairs that take them from the entryway to the second floor. At the top of the stairs there is a hallway to the right and a balcony that looks over the entryway and leads into another hall, Leon leads them down the right hall. Down the hall are three doors on the right side and two on the left. Leon leads them to the middle of the three on the right and opens the door. The interior is a simple lay out: large bed, dresser, nightstand, full length mirror, and a large window that looks out into the backyard where the pool and grill can be seen. Saro looks around at the beautiful furniture and room, though it is slightly dull, the furniture is beautiful nonetheless. Leon sets her bags down at the foot of the bed before walking over to one of the two doors that stand on each side of the bed.

"This one," he says as he opens the first door, "is the bathroom. You've got fresh towels under the sink and if you ever run out just yell and I'll get some more." He then goes around the bed to the other door. "And this is the closet," he says as he opens the door to show the long, walk-in closet. Saro's eyes go wide at the massive bathroom and closet, not being familiar with such spacious surroundings.

Leon watches as she steps into the bathroom and gets a glimpse of the white and black striped tale that runs from just below the waistband of her jeans to the floor. He also gets a glimpse of how good her butt looks in those jeans. _NO! Bad Leon! No dirty thoughts about Saro,_ he mentally scolds himself. He won't deny that she is very attractive: soft features, a slim, toned figure, very well equipped in the chest and trunk area, not to mention the stripes that pattern her skin make him want to lick every inch of-. _Damn it Leon I said 'no'!_ He mentally forces himself to stop his perverted thoughts, it's just been a while since he's even seen such a beautiful girl. After she steps out of the bathroom Saro rounds the bed to inspect the closet.

"This is amazing. You could fit ten people in here." She says as she walks the full length of the closet and then steps back out. He smiles and nods as the three of them make their way out of the room and he closes it behind them.

"My room is the last one there," Leon says, pointing to the last of the two doors on the other side of the hall. "If you ever need anything just knock." Saro nods with a friendly smile and he returns it.

"Well, unfortunately I can't stay for the tour," Ms. Hilary says with a sad smile. "Mr. Williams, if you wouldn't mind walking me to the door, I will let you two get better equated."

"Of course," Leon says with a smile as he leads them back to the entryway.

"Alright, I will visit you every week or so to see how everything's going. If you need anything or have questions you both have my number. I hope you two enjoy this experience." She says. She shakes Leon's hand and bows to Saro as Leon opens the door for her. After tripping over the threshold of Leon's doorway, almost falling flat on her face and giving Leon and Saro a scare, she makes her way down to her car and disappears down the drive way.

"I swear, that woman needs to wear pads." Leon says as he closes the door. Saro giggles at his remark and he smiles at the sound. "Alright, let's start the tour." Leon takes her through the house, showing her the study and weight room that are down the hallway on the left side of the second floor, he also shows her the kitchen, living room, and the billiards room on the first floor.

"Billiards?" she asks as she points to the large table, one of her white eyebrows cocked up in an adorable face.

"Yeah, basically you use the white ball and the stick to hit the other balls into the holes. I'll teach you to play later." He says and she smiles at that. He also shows her the old video arcade games that sit against the walls of the room. He then leads her back towards the kitchen and out the sliding screen door to the pool area. Her mouth hangs open as she sees the long pool. Leon can't help but laugh as he sees her face and she instantly goes red. "I take it you like to swim?" he asks and she nods, her cheeks still burning. He then shows her the massive grill that is set into a stone countertop that his father had built years ago and then mentions that they are having steak for dinner, which makes her beam with excitement. He then leads her back inside and to a door that is set off from the living room.

"This door leads to the basement," he says before leading her into a dark stairway. He flicks on a light and leads her down the stairs into another dark room before hitting another switch, illuminating the large basement that serves as Leon's training room.

"Wow," Saro breaths as she stares at the large room. Half of the room's floor is dominated by practice mats and exercise equipment, some of the walls also have mats and others have mirrors that stretch from floor to ceiling. A large punching bag hands in the center of matted area with a few training dummies set off to one wall. Saro then notices the large display case standing next to the door and immediately goes to inspect it. "Oh wow," she exclaims as she sees the contents of the large case: medals, trophies, awards, and pictures hang and stand on the inside of the case.

Leon scratches his head as he smiles sheepishly. "Yeah, I'm kind of a martial art's nut. I've been in a few contests and stuff." _A_ few, she thinks to herself, there have to be at least thirty different awards in the case.

"You must be very skilled," she says as her eyes wander over the awards and pictures. One picture catches her eye and she steps closer to get a better look. The picture shows four people: three men, one woman. She instantly recognizes one to be a younger Leon, he's riding on the shoulders of the other two men who are older and appear very similar in looks, brothers probably, and the woman is set off with her arm in the air as if in the middle of a victory cry. Leon is dressed in nothing but a pair of black shorts and red, padded gloves, a large trophy in his hands as the two older men lift up on their shoulders. "The boy in this picture is you?" Saro asks curiously. Leon's smile instantly falls to a depressed frown.

"Yeah, that was my second mixed martial arts tournament. I ended up winning first place. My parents were so proud, it was a good day, even though I'd lost a tooth in the final match." Leon says. Saro instantly senses the change in Leon's mood.

"Is something wrong Leon?" Saro asks, now looking at him and seeing the sadness in his eyes.

"I try not to think about my parents." He says, turning his back to her. She steps closer, her curiosity still eating at her.

"Did something happen?" she asks. Leon sighs heavily before he turns back around to face her.

"Three months ago…my parents were in a car accident. They didn't make it. Now it's just me here." He says. Saro's eyes go wide and she curses her curiosity.

"Leon, I'm so sorry. I had no idea. I should've ju-," he raises his hand to cut her off.

"It's fine it's fine. You didn't know, no reason to be sorry. I still have my uncle Bastian so I'm not _all_ alone but…yeah." He says but she can still see the pain in his eyes. Losing his parents has devastated him and she can see it plainly. Leon tries to think of a way to defuse the awkwardness, quickly looking around the room and his punching bag catches his eye. "Um, you do any martial arts?" he asks changing the topic.

Saro realizes that he's trying to lighten the mood she's created and decides to follow his lead. "Yes. I've trained in karate, kung fu, and a secret fighting style taught in my village." She says and that instantly catches his interest.

"Really, would you like to show me?" Leon asks and she smiles softly while nodding. Leon waves for her to follow him as he leads her to a door on the far side of the room. He opens it and hits a switch to reveal shelves of different kinds of training equipment: boxing gloves, training swords, staffs, and other kinds of practice weapons, kendo armor and swords, and several other items for various styles of martial arts.

Saro looks around the room with wide eyes, amazed by the collection. "I take it that you are versed in more fighting styles than I am?" she says as she looks over the equipment. Leon actually blushes as he takes out a role of boxing tape and a pair of MMA gloves. He then leads her back out to matted area. "Let's get your arms taped up." He says, holding out his hand. Her face instantly goes a little red and she looks at him worriedly.

"Wh-why do I need my arms tapped?" she asks and he raises a brow at her.

"Don't you wrap your arms so you don't pull a muscle or something?"

"Oh," she says, realizing what he means. "No, my species' muscles are several times stronger than that of humans'. I can hit a punching bag without hurting myself. Plus, it hurts when you have to remove the tape and it pulls the fur off my arms." Leon mentally face-palms himself after her explanation. _Duh!_ Leon then looks at her for a moment and wonders why she blushed the way she did when he offered. Dismissing it, he then steps away from the bag and sits down with his legs crossed, setting the not needed gloves beside him. Saro then kicks off her flip flops and steps towards the bag. "Alright, this technique is called Hǔ zhǎo quán. It's a form that the people of my village have practiced for many generations. It's very similar to traditional Heihuquan kung fu, only we focus on using our claws." Saro spreads her legs wide and crouches low into a fighting stance, bringing her hands up and curling her fingers so that her claws stick out like daggers.

Leon's eyes go wide as the harmless looking girl he had just seen a second ago turns into a fierce warrior. Her face is now completely emotionless but her eyes look as if they are filled with fury; her pupils have also dilated into the vertical slit-shape that reminds him of a cat. As if with the flick of a switch, she instantly steps towards the bag and throws three quick jabs, only keeping her hands in the claw position. She stops her hands just as they would rip through the bag and then steps into a round house. Just as she her leg makes contact with the bag, making it strain hard against the chains, she immediately draws back and leaps into the air to deliver a straight kick, the force making the medal chains ring through the room.

Saro then stands up straight and puts her hands together as if she's praying with her eyes closed, letting out a long breath. When she opens her eyes her pupils are circular again. "Bloody hell Saro, that was incredible!" Leon exclaims as he jumps to his feet. He instantly goes red as he realizes he just cursed in front of her. "Um, sorry. That was just really impressive."

Saro laughs at his sheepishness and shakes her head. "It's alright. To be honest I actually have a fowl mouth of my own. I've been trying to keep in under control though." She admits.

"I can't imagine you cussing. You seem too good natured for that." He says. She then cocks a brow at him with a smirk.

"Believe me, I'm a badass predator, Leon. Once I get my claws in your ass, you will regret crossing me." She says, holding up her sharp claws for display. Leon's eyes go wide at the deadly sounding tone and she immediately drops the façade, laughing hysterically. "I'm sorry…it was…t-too hard not to." She says against her laughter. Leon's gets infected by her laughter and starts to howl as well.

"Fair enough…you…you got me good." He says, trying to sober himself. When the both finally calm down, Leon points over to the door that leads back upstairs. "Okay, what say we head back upstairs, I get the steaks out to thaw for dinner, and we just relax for a while? Sound good?" She nods with a broad smile, showing off her elongated canines, and they both leave the room.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Saro hears the beeping tone of her alarm and groans. Without looking she paws the top of the nightstand till she finds her phone. She sighs when she finally hits the snooze button and the annoying tone is silenced. The previous day had been an enjoyable one, she enjoys Leon's company, his polite and gentlemanly demeanor are very comforting, and makes it easy to talk to him. He's also an amazing cook, the steaks he had cooked last night had been delicious: tinder, barely cooked just how she likes it. She also enjoyed meeting Leon's uncle Sebastian. The older man has a good nature about him that is infectious. Sebastian had spent the entire time telling stories about Leon, most of them embarrassing. Leon pretty much kept an evil glare pinned on his uncle the entire time, his face molten as his uncle told story after story.

Saro's alarm goes off again and she groans, deciding it is time to wake up. She quickly showers and dresses, picking out a pair of khaki capris and a silky, blue top that leaves her right shoulder bare. After she is clean and dressed she leaves the room and is stopped cold. A wonderful aroma hits her nostrils: the sweet, sizzling aroma of pork, the soft, creamy scent of eggs, and another scent she's not familiar with, a sweet smell that reminds her of bread baking but different somehow. Her empty stomach growls as she immediately searches out the source of the fragrance. She's brought to the kitchen where she finds Leon standing at the stove and she's taken aback. Leon is standing at the stove in wearing a tight-fitting, white, sleeveless shirt that barely hides any of his toned and muscular back, shoulders, and arms; along with a pair of low hanging pajama pants that barely hang on his hips. An image of those pants sliding down his hips goes through her mind and she instantly blushes. _Saro, no. Bad girl._

He turns and sees her standing behind him and she notices his eyes widen a degree. _He must not be used to seeing an Extraspecies person yet_ , she thinks to herself. He looked at her the same way when they first met yesterday. It makes her feel strange when he stares at her like that but it can't be helped. Humans are still adjusting to Extraspecies people, it's only to be expected.

"Good morning Saro. Sleep well?" he asks as he takes several, sizzling strips of bacon and places them on a stack next to the stove. He then takes the plate and sets the large stack of bacon on the table. Saro's eyes stay glued to the tall stack of crispy, delicious bacon and she actually starts to drool. "I take it you're hungry?" Leon's voice brings her back to the present and she instantly goes red, wiping her drool from her chin.

"Yes, sorry. And I slept well." She says sheepishly. Leon laughs as he goes back to the stove. "Did you sleep well, Leon?" she asks as he takes an egg from a carton next to the stove.

"Yeah. How do you like your eggs?" he asks.

"Um, just fried is fine. No salt please." She says and he nods, cracking one of the eggs and then letting it fall into the sizzling pan. He cracks two more eggs and adds them to the pan before he goes to the other side of the kitchen and opens an appliance she's unfamiliar with. Inside is a pastry, circular with a grid pattern baked into it. Saro gasps as she sees the large, fluffy waffle, her eyes wide with joy as she licks her lips. Leon looks at her and instantly starts laughing again.

"I guess you like waffles too, huh?" he asks through his laughter and she nods vigorously, her eyes fixated on the food. "I can tell. I've got maple syrup, butter, anything you want." He says as he lays the waffle on a plate and then refills the waffle press. Saro lets the sweet aroma fill her nostrils again and it's enough to make go crazy.

"I haven't had waffles since before I left Japan." Saro says as she eyes the plate.

* * *

Leon's brow goes up at her statement. "You were staying in Japan before you came here?" he asks curiously. Yesterday Saro had not talked much about herself, save for her demonstration of her fighting skills last night and her appreciation for his cooking.

"Yeah. I stayed there for four months but…" she breaks off, "there were some…complications." She says, her voice drenched in depression. Leon looks over his shoulder at her, her eyes are on the ground, her face full of hurt, honestly she looks like she's about to burst into tears. _Defuse the situation Leon._

"You know, you've learned a good bit about me just in these two days, but I don't really know anything about you." Leon says, changing the subject as he goes back to the stove to finish the eggs. Saro looks at him with a cocked eyebrow.

"What do you mean? I've told you about me?" she retorts.

"You've told me where you're from, how you like my food, and you showed me your fighting. That doesn't really tell me _that_ much about you." Leon says with his own eyebrow raised. Saro cocks her head like she's thinking and shrugs.

"Fair enough. What do you want to know?" she asks as he puts her eggs on the same plate as the waffle and brings it to the table.

"Hmm…well, what's your village like?" he asks. He gives her smiling droll stare as she ignores his question, her eyes pinned to her plate. After a second she wakes up from her food-induced fantasy and blushes again.

"Sorry. Well, it's a small village at the base of Mount Tai. There's an ancient Buddhist temple near the peak that gets a lot of visitors but our village is set off far enough that no one can find it. Well, not unless you work for the Cultural Exchange program at least. The villagers used to serve as guardians for the temple but that was years ago." She explains. Leon whistles in surprise.

"So, that's where your fighting style came from?" he asks and she nods as she drowns her waffle in syrup. His own food now cooked, he brings his plate to the table to sit across from her. "So what did you do for fun?"

"I spent most of my days training with my father. While my people haven't served the temple in almost a century we still train." She says as she takes a bite of her waffle. Her eyes go wide and she lets out a loud moan of delight. Leon's face goes instantly red. _Appropriate thoughts Leon, appropriate thoughts,_ Leon repeats in his mind, trying to suppress a certain part of his anatomy that is trying to make itself known. "This food is so _Goood_ Leon! Where did you learn to cook this well?" she asks happily as she takes another bite. Leon laughs nervously, scratching the back of his head as his cheeks burn.

"Well, my mom started teaching me to cook when I was thirteen. She always said, 'Women love a man who can cook, and they adore a man who can cook well.'" He says with a sad smile. A sharp pain lacerates his chest at the thought of his mom. He missed cooking with her whenever he would get home from school. He misses his dad too, he loved both of them equally but his father had been his best friend, the one person he could depend upon above all others.

"You miss them…don't you?" Saro asks. Leon looks up at her and he realizes that he has tears in his eyes. He wipes them away and nods.

"Yeah…Uncle Bastian had asked me to move in with him after it happened but…I couldn't do it. Being here…makes it easier somehow, I guess. It's like their still here with me." Leon's eyes go wide when he feels a pair of fury arms wrap around his shoulders and squeeze him lightly; he hadn't even hear her get up. He covers one of her hands with his own, letting the soft fur soothing against his palm.

"I'm so sorry Leon. I can't imagine how hurt you are. I don't even want to think what would happen if I lost my family." Saro says as she lays her cheek between his shoulder blades. She gives him another squeeze before she lets him go. Leon doesn't know how, but for some reason his chest doesn't hurt much after that.

"Thanks Saro." He says in a whisper and she gives him a soft smile. Saro then goes back to her seat and takes another bite of her food, letting out another moan that brings Leon very close to popping the button on his pants.

* * *

Leon sighs as he lets the scalding water of his shower pour over him. "I swear, I'm gonna have to sew my pants shut with wire if she moans like that every time she eats my food." Leon complains, his thoughts instantly conjuring the sound in his mind and his body acts accordingly. He sighs again as his body cries out for satisfaction, not that he's surprised from it. Saro is sweet, beautiful, fascinating, and sexy as hell. Unfortunately she's also off limits in the worst kind of way, if Leon so much as kisses her he could be arrested and Saro could be deported. It's so hard not to think about though.

She had spent the rest of their time eating and telling him about her village and her time in Japan. When Leon had been twelve his parents had taken him to Japan for a family vacation, which was about the time he had grown a love for anime and manga. Saro also grew a love for the art forms and they even like a few of the same series. They also have similar interests in music, movies, they both have a fascination with martial arts, it's like a cruel joke of fate or something. Purging it from his mind, he turns off the water and gets out to dry himself and get dressed.

* * *

Leon walks into his room, drying his hair. The room is similar to the guest rooms, same size with a walk in closet and bathroom, only instead of the plain cream colored walls his are painted a dark blue. He also has a plasma screen mounted to the wall, a metal-framed desk, and an entertainment center sitting underneath the TV. Leon drops the towel on the ground and circles around the bed to go to his closet. Just as he gets to the other side of his bed he hears a soft tapping on his door before it creaks open, followed by a shrill cry.

"Shit!" Leon curses as he dives to the floor behind his bed as Saro hides behind the cracked open door.

"I-I'm so sorry Leon! I should've waited for you to answer the door. Please forgive me." Saro says from behind the door. Leon's face is burning a dark red as he peeks his head over the top of the bed.

"Uh, it's alright. No harm done…Um, did you need something?" Leon asks as he hides behind the bed. Saro peaks one eye around the edge of the door to look at him, he can tell she's blushing just as badly as him, her crystal blue eye staring widely at him.

"Um, I was…wondering if you'd like to swim with me. It doesn't seem appropriate to use your pool without you," she says without moving an inch while she talks.

"Sure, sounds fun. Though, you don't have to ask to use the pool or have me with you. You can use it whenever you like, as long as you like."

"O-Okay, thank you Leon. Um, I'll be outside," she says as she slowly closes the door. Leon falls back to rest his head on the carpet to help calm himself after that embarrassing incident.

"Chill out Leon, she hasn't even been here for a whole twenty-four hours. There's gonna be a few bumps in the beginning," he says aloud. He sighs as he pushes himself off the ground and goes to put on his swimming trunks.

* * *

Saro lets herself float gently, the sun warming her face, torso, and thighs. Ever since she was a little girl she adored swimming, her parents had always wondered if she was meant to be a fish, it always made her laugh when she was younger. She puts her feet down so that she can stand up, her shoulders peeking just above the water's surface. She runs her fingers through her hair, her claws working out a few knots. She hears the screen door close and she looks to see Leon coming out of the house, wearing nothing but a pair of white swimming trunks with a blue wave patter running up the legs.

Saro instantly starts to blush as she watches him walk towards the pool, his bodily rippling with muscles. She tries to force herself to stop looking at him or at least stop herself from thinking about the things she'd like to do with that body of his but it's no use. She can't deny that she's attracted to him, not just physically but emotionally as well. Just from living with him this long she can see they have a lot in common, but there are too many things that forbid any kind of relationship than what they already share: the law being the biggest problem, but he still stares at her the same way he's doing now, as if she's still strange to him. She's not offended or even uncomfortable but she would like for him to become used to her soon.

Saro swims over to the edge of the pool and pulls herself out of the water, revealing her solid pink bikini set. Saro notices his eyes go a little wider than a moment ago but she ignores it. She keeps her eyes on the concrete ground as he steps towards her.

"Something wrong?" he asks with his head cocked to one side. Saro folds her hands in front of her awkwardly, keeping her eyes on the ground.

"I wanted to apologize for earlier. I got excited about the pool and just opened the door." Leon starts laughing and Saro looks up in surprise. "Wh-what's so funny?" Leon shakes his head as he calms down, giving her a warm smile.

"The fact that you feel bad enough about it to give me a formal apology. Saro, you've been here less than a day. We're still learning each other's habits, there's gonna be a few hiccups but that's normal. Don't worry about it so much." Leon explains while still smiling. Saro's mouth quirks up in a shy smile.

"Okay, thank you for your hospitality Leon. But I still feel like I should do something to make up for it." She says. Leon's mind instantly goes to places it shouldn't be thinking about while wearing just a pair of swimming shorts, but he quickly thinks of something that will be fun and something that won't land him in a jail cell.

"Well, if you want to that badly I have an idea." He says as he walks over to the edge of the pool and waves for her to come over. She cocks an eyebrow at him as she goes over and stands beside him. He looks at her with a smile and she gives him a confused look.

"What are yo- AUGH!" Saro yells as Leon quickly pushes her over into the pool. Saro quickly resurfaces, coughing and spluttering water out of her mouth and nose, Leon's hysterical laughter ringing through the air. After her airways are clear she looks up at him with an evil grin. "I'll get you for that!" she yells as she quickly pulls herself out of the pool and Leon turns to run. Faster than a human, Saro bolts towards him before he can get away, wraps her arms around his waist, pulls him back towards the edge of the pool and throws him in. He screams as he plunges into the water. He resurfaces looking like a mad man as he laughs and tries to cough up water at the same time, which succeeds in make Saro laugh as well. She wraps her arms around her sides as she laugh at Leon's current state, which distracts her as he comes to the edge of the pool, grabs her behind the knees and flips her into the pool.

"Ha! Gotcha again!" Leon cries as Saro resurfaces again. She gives him another evil grin before she splashes water at him and he returns the attack. The two of them spend an hour in the pool before they get out and lounge in the sun chairs by the edge of the pool, letting the warm rays warm dry their skin. Saro rolls in her chair so that she can look at Leon and her eyes go to the deep ridges of his abdominal muscles. _Why can't I just run my fingers over that stomach, just once?_ She shakes her impure thoughts away before she thinks of something to distract herself.

"So Leon, are there any plans for today?" Leon scratches his chin in thought. Walhalla, South Carolina is a small town, not too much to offer on its own. However, there are a few things that Leon has found over his life that have made for some good memories.

"I have something I think you might like."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"This place is beautiful, Leon." Saro says as they walk down the dirt trail. South Carolina is peppered with beautiful hiking trails national parks, some of them going for miles through serene woods and some of the best are relatively close. Leon has always loved to hike, this particular trail being his favorite.

"You haven't even seen the best part yet." Leon says with a friendly smile. The trail starts out in a moderate trek, the trail mostly level. After about half an hour the trail becomes steep and slithers through hills. The trail leads to a steep incline that leads up a small hill and then back down. Saro goes a head of Leon as they make their way up the incline. Leon looks up and gets a good view of Saro's butt in a pair of _really_ short, khaki shorts. She's also wearing a loose-fitting, sleeveless shirt that shows off the pink top of her bikini from earlier.

"Shit," Leon says under his breath as his face goes red as a tomato. Saro looks down at him and keeps his eyes on the ground as he looks for a stable place to step.

"Something wrong?" Saro asks, concerned.

"N-no I'm good. Almost stepped on an ant hill is all." Leon lies nervously. Saro looks at him with an amused grin.

"Not of fan of bugs?" she asks and Leon looks up at her now, his face slightly less red now.

"I'm not a fan of fire ants. I stepped in a big hill of them once when I was kid. Had blisters all over me for a week." Leon laughs.

"Aw. I'm sorry." Saro says with a sad smile. Leon laughs as they make their way to the top of the hill.

"Don't be. Everyone thinks the bites are what hurts. The itching afterwards is what's really bad."

* * *

Saro and Leon walk side by side as the path evens out. Saro looks around at the beautiful scene around her: the tall pine trees stretching high over their heads, a small creek running through the forest on their left, the warm, mid-summer sun shining through the trees, it's truly a beautiful day and she's glad Leon had thought of this. She looks at him out of the corner of her eye and smiles softly. He's so handsome and charming, but none of that matters. The law won't allow any kind of relationship between them. She knows that the law is more lenient towards Lamia, Harpies, and other species that consist of only one gender who need humans in order to have children, unfortunately Bastets are not on that list. Though, Saro still isn't sure about Leon. Obviously they've only known each other a day and while she's learned a lot about him there's only so much someone can learn about another person in a day. Furthermore, that's not all that Saro's unsure of; while Leon is kind and a gentleman she can't get over that stare of his. Even now she can feel his eyes on her; she can't take it anymore.

"Leon, can I ask you something?" Saro asks, not looking at him.

"Of course." He says with a friendly smile.

"Am I…strange…to you?" she asks, her eyes going to the ground. Leon cocks one of his eyebrows in confusion.

"No? Why?" Saro takes a slow breath.

"I've noticed that you stare at me. I mean, I'm not offended, it was strange when I first saw a human so I can understand it. Though, I would appreciate it if you coul-."

"Saro, I'm sorry but I…I gotta explain myself," Leon interrupts, his face a soft shade of red. "I'm sorry that I made you feel uncomfortable but I don't find you strange or anything like that, at all. I think you're fascinating, and funny, and just fun to be around." Saro comes to a stop and meets his eyes, her cheeks a little red now; she's not used to being complimented like that.

"Then, why do you keep staring at me?" Saro asks curiously. Leon's mouth turns up in an awkward smile as his whole face goes red.

"W-well, um…you're, um…I think you are…uh…" Leon stammers as Saro looks at him with those blue, curious eyes. He takes a deep breath and then pins his eyes to the ground. "I think you're…very pretty…like… _very_ pretty." Leon admits nervously. Saro's face goes as red as Leon's as her eyes go wide, his face also going a deeper shade of red.

 _He thinks I'm pretty?! That's why he was staring at me?!_ Saro yells at herself mentally. This entire time she thought he was looking at her because she was abnormal when he was actually admiring her. _How stupid can I be?!_ Saro turns away from Leon, too embarrassed to look at him.

"I'm so sorry Saro. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," Leon exclaims, unsure what to do. "I just d-didn't want you to think I think you're weird or anything. I just… figured you'd prefer to know the real reason." Saro hears the guilt in Leon's voice and it makes her feel even worse. She takes a deep breath again before she turns back around to face him, both their faces burning red.

"It's fine Leon. I'm sorry it's just…I'm not used to getting complimented like that. And I'm sorry I assumed what you thought of me." She says. Leon looks down at the ground and scratches the back of his head.

"It's fine…If it'll make you more comfortable I'll…stop…staring I mean." Leon says awkwardly. Saro eyes go straight the ground as her faces goes slightly redder.

"Um…you don't…have to stop…if you don't want to." Saro says just low enough that he can hear her. The two of them stare at each other in silence for what feels like eternity, neither of them knowing what to say or do.

"W-we should…probably get going." Leon suggests and Saro nods silently. The two continue down the trail in silence, walking side by side.

Saro's mind is in several different places at once: she's relieved that Leon doesn't find her strange, she's angry at herself for thinking that he did and not realizing he was actually admiring her, she's ecstatic that he was admiring her, and more she can't even explain. Saro isn't delusional, she's not in love with him, but she wouldn't turn down the chance to date him. He's good looking, kind, gentlemanly, good looking, and she knows he's single; Leon's uncle had made several comments about how he needs a woman in life. Though, she knows that he's off limits _and_ she still barely knows him, but right now she's wondering if that really matters.

* * *

The two walk the winding trail till they come to their destination. "My god…Leon this is _fantastic_." Saro says as she stares at the beautiful scene in front of her. The trail ends a huge waterfall that flows into the river that they passed earlier. The part of the trail they are standing on now has a drop off on their left that goes down into a steep valley. The water falls off a higher cliff and fills into a small lagoon, where the trail ends, and then flows off another cliff before becoming part of the river. The area is beautiful rock formations that are unblocked by trees so that the sun can beat down on them, perfect for sun bathing, and some are high enough above the lagoon to make for good diving spots. Already there is a family playing in the lagoon.

Leon looks over the place with a fondness he hasn't felt in a while. He and his parents used to come here all the time. Leon and his father would swim and dive off the rocks while his mom would sun bath and take pictures. A stab of pain shoots through his chest but he ignores it. He looks to Saro and instantly gets confused. A moment ago she sounded awestruck and excited but now she looks stressed and hesitant.

"You okay, Saro?" he asks and she gives him a sideways look.

"Do you think those people will…mind us?" she asks without turning towards him. Leon laughs at her self-consciousness.

"Well, if they do, I got no problem teaching them some manners." He says in his best, southern-tough-guy accent, which succeeds in making her laugh. He laughs and places a hand on her shoulder. "Look, don't worry about how other people look at you. Just focus on me, okay?" he says with a smile. She blushes a little and nods, her face a soft smile that makes Leon blush as well.

The two of them make their way towards the lagoon area, neither of them paying the family any attention. Leon leads Saro towards a flat rock slab before he strips off his shirt, leaving him in his swimming trunks from earlier. Saro follows suit, taking off her shirt and shorts to reveal the same bikini she had been wearing earlier at the pool. Leon then leads her up a tall boulder that stands over the lagoon. At the top Leon stands up, turns his back to the lagoon with a devilish grin, and does a back flip. Saro covers her mouth in surprise as Leon tumbles down into the cool water. He hits the water with a satisfying splash, the cool water enveloping him. He quickly resurfaces and waves for her to jump in. She looks down at him like he's crazy and shakes her head. He yells up, "Are you a Tigress or a chicken?!" his voice echoing off the smooth rock face. Saro's face becomes emotionless as she stands up. Leon laughs as she takes twenty minutes to finally work herself to finally jump. Letting out a loud _eep_ that echoes through the area, she splashes down a few feet away from him.

She resurfaces immediately, laughing and sputtering water like a mad person. "That was _awesome!_ " she says as she swims towards the shore. Leon laughs at her eagerness and quickly follows after her. They reach the sandy shore of the lagoon and Saro pushes herself up to stand.

"Excuse me," a soft, high-pitched voice asks. Leon looks up to see a small girl, probably seven or eight years old, wearing a little one-piece swimsuit with cartoon characters printed on it. "Are you one of those Extra-people?" the little girl asks putting her tiny hands behind her back, looking at Saro. Leon looks at Saro who is glancing nervously at the little girl, to Leon, and back to the girl. Leon nods to Saro, giving her a soft smile and she nods, too, understanding his meaning.

"Um, yes. I'm an Interspecies person." Saro says softly. The little girl steps closer to Saro, the little girl having to look straight up to make eye contact.

"Are those your real ears?" she asks and Saro nods awkwardly. "Can I feel them?" the little girl asks sweetly. Saro looks to Leon again and he nods, keeping the same smile. Saro bends down on one knee and leans her head over. The little girl reaches up and runs her fingertips over the soft fur on Saro's ears and squeals in delight when Saro twitches her ears. "That's so cool. I wish I could have ears like that." The little girl says in a giddy voice, bouncing up and down her toes. The girl's cute reaction succeeds in bringing a smile to Saro's face, erasing her nerves.

Leon smiles brightly at Saro and the little girl. It's nice to see Saro open up a little and not be so hesitant. He laughs the little girl points to Saro's hands and she holds them up, flexing and flexing her fingers to tract and retract her claws.

"Sally," Leon hears an older woman's voice and looks up to see a woman with wide-brimmed sunglasses coming towards them. She does a double take when she sees Saro but then continues to step closer. "Sally you shouldn't pester people like that. It's rude sweetie." She says to the little girl. Sally looks up at the woman and points to Saro's head.

"She's not bothering us, Ma'am." Leon says with a friendly smile and the woman returns it with a nod.

"Look mommy, she's got tiger ears. And they're real too." Sally says with a crooked-toothed smile. Sally's mother shakes her head while smiling.

"Sally you'll make her self-conscious if you keep talking like that." She says, stepping towards Saro. "Hi, I'm Shelby," she says, extending her hand friendly toward Saro. Saro shakes it hesitantly and then Shelby turns to Leon to do the same.

"I'm Leon, and this," he gestors to Saro, "is my homestay, Saro." Shelby takes off her glasses and gives both of them a friendly smile.

"Well it is so nice to meet you, Leon, Saro," she says, "I haven't had the chance to meet an Interspecies person. If you don't mind me asking, are those tattoos?" Shelby asks, looking at the dark stripes on Saro's body.

"Um, no, they're natural. My people are similar to tigers, each of us are born with stripes." Saro explains. Shelby's eyes widen a little, her eyes examining the stripe pattern on her skin.

"That's amazing. They're very beautiful." Shelby says and Saro blushes, which makes the woman, Sally, and Leon laugh; which makes Saro blush even more.

"T-thank you, Mrs. Shelby." Saro says and Shelby waves her hand at Saro, laughing.

"Oh honey don't 'Mrs.' me. I'm just Shelby." She says and Saro smiles warmly. The four of them talk for several minutes, Shelby and Sally asking Saro about herself and telling stories of their own. Leon smiles as he listens to Saro, Shelby, and Sally talk as if it is a normal, everyday occurrence to meet someone like Saro.

"Hey mommy! Look at me look at me!" a voice cries and the four of them look to the source. At the edge of the lagoon where the water falls over the cliff and down to the river below is a fallen tree that is hanging over the edge, anchored into the ground by its roots. On the tree's trunk is a small boy, ten or eleven maybe. He's waving to Shelby from the trunk as he walks it like a tight rope, laughing and giggling like there isn't a thirty-foot trop underneath him.

"Michael Samson Turnsdale you get off of there this _instant_!" Shelby says as her face grows pale. She quickly pushes herself off the ground and rushes towards the tree. Leon and Saro launch themselves up and rush towards the tree as fast as they can. Michael ignores his mother's command and starts to bounce up and down on the trunk. "Michael!" Shelby yells. All of a sudden a loud _crack_ rings through the air and the trunk of the tree drops a few feet lower, pointing towards river below. Michael slips and falls, letting out a terrified cry as he grabs on to the trunk before he can fall. "Michael! Hang on baby!" Shelby shrieks as her son hangs on to the trunk.

Leon's mind and body go into overdrive, his adrenaline pumping due to the danger of the situation. Still running towards the tree, he looks to where the roots of the tree are now slowly pulling upwards, the old, rotting claws slowly snapping and losing their grip on the ground. Leon turns his run into a dead sprint towards the base of the tree and throws himself at the base of the trunk. Just when the roots are about to give way Leon lands on the tree trunk with a hard _thump_ , forcing the roots back into the dirt. Michael screams as he feels the tree jerk which also causes Shelby to shriek in fear.

Leon groans as his back aches from landing on the hard wood but ignores it. He positions himself so that all of his two hundred pounds of body weight is on the base of the trunk, pressing it down. _Okay Leon, now_ what _?!_ He yells at himself mentally. All of a sudden he sees a flash of white, black, and pink fly over him. He looks down the trunk to see Saro as she quickly runs down the trunk of the tree. While her feet are shaped like a human's, each of her toes is tipped with a black, retractable claw, which she is using to hold herself on the trunk as she bounds towards the boy. As the trunk becomes thinner she bends down to quickly scurry towards him on all fours, her head bent low like a tiger as it stalks its prey. When she finally reaches the boy, she hops, holding the trunk with her right hand, swings under the tree, grabs the boy with her left arm, and swings herself and the boy back onto the tree. Leon's eyes go wide at the acrobatic skill Saro just displayed as she bounds back down the tree trunk with the boy clinging to her chest. She leaps over Leon, back to safety and Leon rolls off the tree, letting it fall and crash to the ground below.

"Michael!" Shelby cries as she runs to her son, tears running down her face. Michael stays clasped to Saro till Shelby reaches them and he latches on to his mother, the both of them crying. Sally comes running as fast as her young legs will carry her and wraps her arms around her mother's leg, all three of them crying. Leon approaches Saro slowly, sweat running down his face, arms, legs, his back sore and he can feel it's speckled with dirt. He places a hand on Saro's shoulder and she puts her arms around his neck instantly, her sweat_soaked body sticking to him as her heart pounds against his chest.

"You did good, Saro." Leon whispers to her and she nods, he can feel her tears as she presses her face into his shoulder. All of a sudden, Leon feels a pair of small arms wrap around his and Saro's leg. He looks down to see Sally, tears running down her small face as she squeezes them as hard as she can. Again, Leon feels another pair of arms wrap around his and Saro's waist and he looks down to find Michael, hugging them both. Leon then looks to see Shelby approaching the four of them, tears running down her face as she opens her arms to hug them all. The older woman wraps her arms around Leon and Saro's shoulders, squeezing them tightly. Leon cringes as all five of them lean against him, their combined weight slowly pushing him backwards. "Um…guys…I…can't…Augh!" Leon and tries to tell them before their weight overwhelms him and he falls backwards. He lets out an _oof_ as the weight of the four other people knocks the wind out of him, causing him to wheeze for breath.

"Leon?" Saro says worriedly as Shelby and her kids quickly crawl back to their feet, leaving Saro to lay on top of Leon. "Leon, are you okay?" Saro worriedly. Leon is no longer wheezing and can breathe fine, but his face is now burning red as he feels something very soft and warm press against his chest.

"Um…Saro…" Leon says and Saro raises a brow. She then looks down to where one of the cups of her bikini has been pulled, leaving her right breast bare. Saro then lets out an ear piercing shriek as she realizes why Leon had started to blush so bad.

* * *

 **I want to thank all the followers of this story and all the feedback I've gotten so far. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. Also, either in the next Chapter or Chapter 6 I plan on introducing a new girl to the story. I still haven't decided on what species to make her yet so if you have suggestions or ideas for one leave it in the comments or send it to me through Private Messaging. Thank you all again and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Wow, I did not mean for this chapter to be so long. Oh well. Okay guys! Next chapter I'm adding a new girl to the story, as promised. I've already gotten some suggestions and they all have potential. If you have a suggestion please leave it in the comments and I'll see if I can use them in later chapters. Also, I haven't decided yet, but if enough people leave enough suggestions I may increase the number of girls. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 5

It has been one week since Leon and Saro had saved Shelby's son at the waterfall. After Shelby and her children had gotten off of Leon and Saro, and Saro adjusted her top after her breast was accidently exposed, Shelby had wanted to thank Saro and Leon in some way but the two would not hear of it. Saro had said her kindness and acceptance had been more than enough and the older woman just hugged her, crying happily.

The next morning Martha and Janice came to the house to clean as they always did on Saturday mornings, only the two had actually learned of the waterfall incident. It turns out that Martha and Janice also work for Shelby during the week; the mother had told Martha about what happened and she instantly recognized Leon from her description. After meeting Saro and praising them both for their heroism, Martha and Janice took an instant liking to Saro; the two women liked her mainly because of her friendly attitude and shy demeanor. Janice instantly went to making comments about how the two of them would make a cute couple, which made both of them blush. On her first weekly visit Ms. Hilary had also heard the story of Leon and Saro's heroism and had praised both of them greatly for their actions saying "You two have no idea how much your actions could help human and Interspecies relations just form doing that."

Over the next few days Leon had taken Saro into the town of Walhalla. The town's main street is small but is filled with shops, small restaurants, and a few parks that are usually peaceful. He has taken her shopping, shown him some of his favorite restaurants, and even showed her the high school where Leon graduated just last year. Leon also begins training and working out with Saro daily, the two testing and challenging each other's skills. As far as strength, Leon outranks Saro but just barely. However, Saro outranks Leon in speed and reflex, mostly due to her animal instincts. Leon had also started teaching her the basics of mixed martial arts and in exchange Saro started to teach him Hǔ Zhǎo Quán.

While the two helped train each other, both Leon and Saro's feelings for each other have also grown stronger. Leon has come to relish his time with Saro; he finds her shy nature attractive, her sedate sense of humor refreshing, and he loves that they share so much in common, not to mention he finds her stunningly beautiful. Saro has also come to appreciate Leon's subtle stares, always aware of them because of her instincts and has even started staring at him. Both of them know they have feelings for the other, wishing they could have a chance to explore these feelings. Neither of them are naïve enough to believe it is love but secretly they believe it is something worth exploring, if only the law were different.

* * *

Leon is sitting on the couch, flicking through the channels as he leans back against the leather, L-shaped sectional. Saro is on her laptop, surfing the web. She's wearing a loose fitting T-shirt and sweat pants, hair pulled back into a messy bun. The two had actually planned on going on another hike today but at about noon black clouds had started to roll in. Fifteen minutes later they could hear heavy drops of rain as they pelted down on the roof. Leon sighs as he drops the TV remote next to him, frustrated DirectTV's lack of distraction.

"Nothing on?" Saro asks without looking at him as she types.

"Not a thing." Leon says as he picks the remote back up and turns off the TV. His next option would be Netflix but he hardly finds anything to watch; he would ask Saro if she wants to watch anything but none of her anime or movies are on Netflix at the moment so she has no interest. Leon looks over to Saro as she scrolls down a manga website. He's not familiar with the manga he sees and he can't read any of the captions since it's in Japanese. "One of these days you need to teach me Japanese." Saro laughs as she looks at him with a smile, showing off her fangs.

"You just want to learn so you can read more manga." Saro accuses and Leon laughs, nodding.

"Well I have nothing better to do right now." He complains jokingly. He could go lift weights or practice his fighting but him and Saro had already done both of those earlier in that morning. He could turn on his Xbox One but Leon has never been _that_ much of a gamer. He lets out a loud groan which makes Saro laugh again. She sets the laptop next to Leon and pushes herself off the couch.

"I'll be right back, walrus." She says as she makes her way towards the bathroom. Leon gives her a fake glare and grunts at her.

"I am not a walrus." He says with a scrunched up face and Saro laughs again as she leaves the room. Leon sighs again as boredom reasserts itself, wishing he had something to do to ease this tormenting boredom from his life. Leon's eyes shoot open as an idea finally comes to him. "Life!" Leon says aloud. While board games are not his ideal way to alleviate boredom, the game of LIFE is one of his preferred games to play. Deciding on it, he jumps up from the couch and instantly regrets it. His vision becomes blurred from getting up so fast. He falls backwards on the couch, only to be met with the clicking and popping of computer keys and plastic.

"Shit!" Leon curses as he falls on top of the laptop and quickly jumps back to his feet. He turns the computer towards him and examines the keyboard and screen quickly, making sure that it isn't broken. The keys work and the screen is still on and functioning so he takes a sigh of relief and then sucks his breath in sharply in surprise as he sees the most unexpected site on Saro's computer. The web page that is on the screen is grey and black in color with several boxes that show a screenshot for a video, the titles of the videos typed out below them in orange text. The only other speck of color appears at the top of the page where the words 'Pornhub' are displayed, the 'hub' part enveloped in orange and spelled out in black text.

 _Holy mother of God_ , Leon thinks to himself as he sees the website that completely baffles him. Leon is not naïve enough to think women don't look at porn. Hell, he pulls some up every now and then when the urge strikes him, but what catches him off guard is the fact that the page that is displayed on the screen is dedicated to videos of a lesbian category.

"Did you find something to-" Leon goes pale as he hears Saro's voice behind him. He slowly turns around to see her standing there, her eyes now wide and her face very pale, the dark stripes decorating her face seeming almost black. Leon stares at her, speechless, not sure what to say.

"Sar-" before he can even finish speaking her name Saro turns and bolts towards the entryway. Leon bursts into a dead sprint but Saro is much quicker, by the time he actually gets into the entryway Saro is already at the top of the stairs. Leon slides across the polished marble floor of the entry way, almost smacking against the wall, and scurries up the stairs on all fours as she hears a door slam. When he finally reaches Saro's door he knocks hard and rapidly, "Saro! Saro please let me in! I didn't mean to pull that up, I fell down on the laptop I swear!" Leon says loudly through the door. He gets no reply and knocks again, "Saro open the door, please!" he asks through the door again but still no reply. Leon sighs heavily, feeling defeated. _Good job you fucking idiot,_ Leon scolds himself, instead of staring at the site like a moron he should've just closed the browser and left it at that, it's none of his business. Though, a stab of disappointment goes through his chest. He's come to have feelings for Saro, he's admitted it to himself now, and part of him is sure that she has feelings for him too, or at least he _had_ been sure; he knows he can't act on these feelings because of the law but it is nice to think she shares his feelings, even if neither of them can act on them. However, after seeing that site just now, he's starting to wonder if she prefers women, not that there's anything wrong with that but it's disappointing for Leon to think about.

After a second the door finally opens to reveal Saro and Leon feels his heart drop at the sight of her. She the small carry-on bag that she had been carrying when she first arrived, a few pieces of clothing sticking out of the partially open zipper. She also has a jacket thrown over one shoulder and he doesn't miss the puffiness of her cheeks or how her eyes are filled with unshed tears.

"I'll ask Ms. Hilary to get my things later. I'm sorry that you had to find out this way Leon," Saro says shakenly as she tries to push past him, her eyes pinned to the floor. Leon grabs her by the elbow gently but she shakes out of his grip. "I hope you won't think of me too badly Le-," Saro tries to say but Leon doesn't listen as he slips past her and stands in her way, pinning her with an emotionless stare.

"Saro, I don't know why you're acting like this or why you want to leave but the least you can do is explain to me why you want to. I can't stop you from leaving but I think I deserve to know why." Leon says as he crosses his arms over his chest. Saro stares at him for a moment, her eyes wide and confused.

"You don't have a…a problem with someone…someone like me?" she says, her voice cracking as a tear breaks loose of her control and slides down her cheek. Leon reaches out and brushes it away with his hand, his heart breaking for the girl.

"What do you mean 'someone like' you?" Saro looks down at the ground as if she can't bring herself to answer.

"I'm…I'm…" Saro physically cringes, struggling to speak. "I'm a pervert," she finally blurts out, more tears now flowing down her cheeks. Leon places a hand on her wet cheek and lifts her face up so that she will look at him. He gives her a comforting smile, hoping to lighten the mood.

"Saro, you're not a pervert just because you watch porn," Leon starts but she shakes her head and back away from him.

"No, not that. I mean…my desires…" she says, her cheeks burning even more from embarrassment.

"You mean…being a lesbian?" Saro looks up at him with her tear filled eyes, their crystal blue color darken by bloodshot.

"Lesbian?" she asks. Leon's cheeks mottle as he scratches the back of his head awkwardly.

"You know…you prefer women over men." Leon explains. Saro nods as she wipes her tears away on her furred forearm.

"Oh…Well…to be honest I…like both…equally." She admits, her voice still shaking. Leon mouths an 'oh' slowly and silently, now understanding. A voice in the back of his head screams out in joy now knowing that she may still have feelings for him too but that's a thought for when he's by himself.

"Well, either way. That's no reason for you to call yourself a pervert and it's even less of a reason for you to leave." Leon says decisively, crossing his arms over his chest. Saro looks at him with wide and tear filled eyes.

"You…you don't think I'm…nasty or…perverted?" she asks, her voice becoming steadier. Leon looks at her with soft eyes, his only purposing right now being to comfort her.

"Of course not Saro," Leon says as he puts his arms around her shoulders, softly squeezing her. She instantly puts her arms around his torso and hugs him tightly. Leon softly strokes her white and black striped hair as her resolve breaks and she buries her face in his shoulder, sobbing softly as her tears soak through his T-shirt. Leon holds Saro for several minutes till she finally becomes quiet and pulls away from him, her face a burning red. "Saro, I have to ask, why would you think you have to leave just because of your sexuality?"

* * *

Saro mentally grimaces at Leon's question as her minds goes to the true cause of her behavior, the memories lacerating her heart again. She looks up into Leon's soft, accepting eyes and the pain subsides a little. She lets out a long sigh as she leans against the wall and slides down to the floor, exhausted. "Do you remember when you asked me why I left Japan and I said 'there were some complications'?" Saro asks and Leon nods quietly. Saro takes a deep breath before she begins.

"Okay, I've known about my…'desires', for a long time. I've only ever told one person besides you, Leon, and that was my mother. After I signed up for the Program I was placed in the home of a Japanese family, we lived in a more suburban part of Tokyo. I lived there with this girl, Chún. We did everything together and her parents were so friendly and kind." Saro says, a sad smile curling her lips as she remembers her short time with Chún. It was her that got Saro addicted to Manga and Anime and Saro had even taught her a few lessons in karate. The two had been practically inseparable; until Saro made a terrible mistake. Saro's smile falls before she continues, "After a while, I started to get a crush on Chún. She was so pretty, and funny, intelligent, and just…" Saro breaks off and then sighs sadly, the memories start to ache again. She looks at Leon out of the corner of her eyes, he's now sitting on the floor beside her, leaning against the wall with his elbow resting on his elevated knee, his face full of sympathy.

"The day that I left their house, Chún and I had gone to this park that was close by. There were cherry blossoms in bloom and it was so beautiful. We'd run through the trees and the wind would blow the blossom peddles off, it was like running in a pink snow storm. One minute we were laughing and smiling and the next, I had my arms around her and I kissed her. To me it felt so great, it was my first kiss. But…she didn't think it was so great. She pushed me away and yelled at me." Saro cringes, thinking about that day. _What are you doing! I'm a girl! What are you, some kind of pervert?! Some yuri-freak?!_ A tear works its way down her cheek as Chún's harsh words replay through her mind. "She ran away from and just stood there, watching her run away. I broke down and cried my eyes out after that. Finally I got up and walked back to her house. When I got there our Program coordinator was there, packing my bags into a car. Chún and her parents were there too, when they saw me they just looked at me with such contempt, like I was a criminal. After that the program moved me into a hotel for a few days till they assigned me to live with you."

* * *

Leon feels his own eyes start to water as Saro finishes her story, her face emotionless but he knows she's hurting inside. He places a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. She places one of her clawed hands over his and keeps it there, as if the contact somehow comforts her. "I'm so sorry, Saro." Leon says sadly. Saro doesn't say anything, only nods as she squeezes his hand gently.

"Leon, please tell me honestly," Saro starts without looking at him. She then meets his eyes with her own, her face full of sadness and hurt and it breaks his heart to see such a beautiful girl like her to be in so much pain. "Is the idea of two women being together truly so wrong?" Leon sighs as he scoots closer and puts his arm around Saro's shoulders.

"No Saro, it's not. There are people in this world who have lived with an outdated and ignorant mindset and have passed it on to their kids. My mom used to say, 'Just because someone is different, believes something different, or does something different doesn't mean their wrong. Everyone is born differently and we all make our own decisions. It's not yours or anyone else's job to judge them.'" Leon smiles at the memory of his mother. She never knew a stranger, she could walk up to anyone on the street and treat them with the same amount of respect she would any other person, no matter what they wore, what they looked like, no matter what she always gave everyone their fair share of respect.

Saro smiles softly and leans her head against Leon's shoulder. "Your mother must have been an amazing woman," Saro says softly. Leon sighs softly, the memories of his mother bittersweet in his mind but the pair of silky, furred ears tickling his jaw make it hard to think about them. Leon looks down at Saro and she looks up at him, her eyes wide, the sadness from before washed away. They stare at each other in silence for what seems like forever. Leon stares into Saro's deep blue eyes, hypnotized by just how beautiful they are. The intensity of this moment isn't lost on Leon but he can't help himself as he slowly starts to dip his head towards Saro.

"Leon," Saro says in a whisper, her soft breath tickling his cheek.

"Yeah?" he asks as his heart rings in his ears.

"Don't hurt me." she says just as she slowly closes her eyes and her lips press softly against Leon's. Leon's eyes go wide at the softness of Saro's lips; the kiss is simple, their lips gently pressed together for a long moment. Finally they pull back a fraction of an inch and then press their lips together again, this time with a little more pressure. Leon takes a deep breath through his nose and his head starts to spin as Saro's scent pours through his head, a sweet but earthly scent. _Wildflowers,_ he thinks to himself.

* * *

Saro moans softly as she deepens the kiss and feels Leon's tongue slowly slide against her own. Leon's taste is intoxicating and heady. Absentmindedly she puts her arms around his neck and he places his on her back, his hands slowly skimming up and down her back. In the back of her mind a voice is yelling at her, _Stop it! This can't happen! It's illegal! You'll just end up hurting yourself again!_ Saro hears this voice loud and clear, but she doesn't care. The only thing she wants, the only thing she _needs_ , is this man's strong arms around her as she explores his mouth.

Saro puts her weight against Leon and he suddenly falls backward, causing Saro to gasp as she's pulled on top of him. They laugh together as Leon bumps his head against the wall and curses and Saro almost face plants into the hardwood floor. Saro adjusts herself, pushes her messy hair back as she straddles Leon's hips, all too aware of the bulge she feels pressing between her legs. She stares down into his smiling, light blue eyed face and she knows she can't go another moment without this.

"We shouldn't be doing this." Saro says with a sad smile.

"Probably not," Leon agrees, nodding with his own wide smile.

"It's illegal."

"We barely know each other."

"I could get deported." Leon then leans up, resting on one of his elbows, his face barely an inch away for hers with their eyes locked in an intense and happy stare.

"But honestly, I don't give a damn." Leon says as he runs his hands through her hair, his fingertips massaging the back of her head as he pulls her lips gently down to his before giving her another passionate kiss, the both of them moaning softly as Leon lowers both of them back down to the floor. The two continue kissing for what seems life forever, the only tangible things in their world being the taste of each other's mouths and the soft moans they make. Saro finally breaks the kiss slowly and raises up to stare down at Leon.

"What is this Leon?" she asks, her face now a soft, sad smile. Leon's smile drops to a face of concern.

"What do you mean?" Leon asks, his brows knitted together.

"Well, it's not like we can actually be together. If Ms. Hilary or anyone finds out…" Saro breaks off, the consequences well known between the two of them. Leon screws his face up as he raises up to sit up straight, putting his arms around Saro.

"Well, it's a stupid law. How can they expect to put us in her together, knowing we'll be alone, and expect us to just ignore our feelings if we have them?" Leon complains. Saro sighs heavily, agreeing with him fully.

"Still, is it really worth it?" Saro asks, her eyes now looking at the floor. "I mean, it's not like we're in love or something." Saro's eyes go a little wide when she feels Leon's fingers go around her chin an turn her head so that he can press his lips against hers for another kiss, a quick and soft one that gets her attention.

"Saro, I'm just gonna be direct. Before Sebastian signed me up for this program, I hadn't left the house except when I absolutely needed to. When my parents died I just shut down…I didn't know how to do anything more. I didn't know how to eat, how to sleep, how to _breathe_. I didn't know how to enjoy life anymore." Leon says and his words make her heart ache, no one like Leon deserves to feel this much pain. "But when you showed up at my door last week, it's like someone flicked the light switch and somehow everything was different. Life isn't the same as it was but…it's better than being in the dark."

Saro's eyes tear up at how sweet his words are. _I'm not in love with him, but he's making it so_ hard _to stay that way._

"So," Leon continues. "If you want to just end this here and forget it…I won't argue…" Leon says, his eyes pleading. Saro doesn't hesitate as she wraps her arms around his neck and hugs him tight.

"I don't want that. But…what are we going to do about Ms. Hilary?" Leon goes silent, his eyes off in space. He scratches his head awkwardly before he speaks again.

"Well, if Ms. Hilary finds out on her own…then everything is going to blow up in our faces. But if we just tell her and be up front…" Leon trails off and Saro raises a brow at the suggestion.

"Then she praises us for being honest and _then_ arrests you and deports me, or the other way around?" Leon gives Saro's sarcastic comment a droll stare and she laughs, which makes Leon shake his head sadly.

"Not what I was thinking but that is a possibility. What I was thinking is that perhaps she'll be lenient. I mean, Ms. Hilary doesn't seem like a tight-by the book-no exceptions kind of agent. It's a gamble at best, but maybe she'll cut us some slack." Leon suggests hopefully. "Hell, it's worth a shot." Saro is terrified by the idea but truthfully she doesn't have a better one.

"Alright…when should we tell her?" Before Leon can answer her, he and Saro feel his cell phone vibrate right before the ringtone starts to play. Saro crawls off of him so that he can pull it out of his pocket. His eyes go wide when he sees who the caller is.

"Speak of the Devil and he shall appear." Leon says as he swipes his thumb over the screen of the IPhone to answer it. Saro's eyes go wide as she catches his meaning. _Please tell me she doesn't have hidden cameras in here or something_ , Saro thinks to herself, looking up and down the hall as if she would be able to spot any hidden devices.

* * *

"You what?" Leon asks as relief and confusion hit him simultaneously. When he saw that Ms. Hilary was calling him he assumed the worst, thinking she somehow knew he and Saro had just kissed. Though, perhaps that would be somewhat easier to deal with.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Williams." Ms. Hilary says sincerely through the phone. "The paper work just now got emailed to me and somehow they expect me to schedule this in twenty-four hours. Please forgive me for the inconvenience." Leon sighs heavily, understanding that it's not her fault but wishing he could find whoever was responsible and give them a good kick to the jaw. Leon uses his thumb and pointer finger to rub his eyes out of frustration before he speaks again, not wanting to say something snarky or rude to her since it isn't really her fault.

"No problem…Not your fault. Like my dad used to say, 'People make plans and God laughs'," Leon says, biting back his attitude. "So, when can I expect you tomorrow?" Leon hears Ms. Hilary move around and mumble through the phone before she speaks again.

"Sometime tomorrow afternoon. I'll call when the plain arrives. Again, I'm so sorry for this." She says again and Leon sighs again.

"Don't worry about it. You did your job, not your fault when someone else doesn't do theirs." Leon says. "We'll see you tomorrow Ms. Hilary. Have a nice day." Leon ends the call and looks at the time: 2:45p.m. _Not even five o'clock and my world is already more complicated._ Leon shoves the phone back into his pocket before he turns to the expectant and worried eyes of the Tigress that is staring at him.

"Please tell me there isn't a warrant for our arrest." She says, the question dripping with concern. Leon smiles as he shakes his head, biting back a laugh.

"No, but to be honest I could probably deal with an arrest warrant rather than this." Leon says as he lays back down on the floor with a long sigh. Saro's eyes go wide and she covers he cheeks in fear.

"W-what is it?" she asks, her white and black striped tail trembling from fear.

"We're getting a new housemate."

* * *

 **I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. As I said at the top, if you have a suggestion for a new girl just leave it in the comments and I'll see what I can do. I want to thank all the followers and the readers and I hope you guys enjoy future chapters. Thanks guys!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. If you have ideas for other girls for future chapters leave them in the comments. Thank you!**

* * *

Chapter 6

The next morning Leon and Saro eat breakfast in awkward silence, not sure what to say or do. After Ms. Hilary called to let them know they would be receiving a new house guest Leon went about making preparations for the newcomer's arrival. Saro had asked several questions regarding the new comer but Leon had no answers since Ms. Hilary hadn't told him any details. After Leon had cleaned and stocked one of the guests rooms with the essential commodities the two of them went back down stairs to try and find something to watch on TV and Netflix, Saro being curled up next him with her tail wrapped around her ankles; something she only does when she's completely relaxed. When night finally came and the two went to their separate rooms Leon had kissed Saro good night, a soft pressing of his lips on hers, and went to bed. This morning she wakes up and goes down stairs to find him making breakfast as he always does, only she has no idea how to act around him now.

Saro finishes her food and takes her dishes to the sink to rinse them off without a word. Yesterday had been so intense and heartfelt that she had slept like a rock, honestly she's still tired, but she has no idea how to behave with Leon after that. They hadn't made it official but she assumes they are a couple, at least until Ms. Hilary sends Leon up the river, as Leon says, and deports her. She's never had a boyfriend or significant other before and is clueless on what to do. She places her dishes in the sink and turns on the water to rinse them.

Saro sucks in a breath sharply when she feels a hard wall of flesh press against her back as two arms go around her stomach, pressing her against the solid, muscled body behind her. Leon leans down to place a soft kiss on her striped cheek and she blushes from the sudden affection. "We don't have to be awkward, Saro." Leon whispers into her ear. Saro shivers at the sensation of Leon's breath against the back of her years. She turns around in his arms places a kiss of her own on his cheek and hugs around the neck. He's shirtless, dressed only in a pair of flannel pajama pants; Saro blushes as she imagines pushing back onto the kitchen table and straddling him but she pushes those thoughts away. _Let's try not break too many laws at once_.

"I'm sorry Leon. This is just so new to me. I've never had a boyfriend and I'm completely clueless on how this works." She admits. She does a double take of her own words and realizes she just called him her boyfriend.

"It's fine. You don't have to act any different around me Saro, just be you. Though, there's just one thing," Leon says forebodingly and Saro waits expectantly for him to continue. To her surprise, he lays a soft kiss on the tip of her nose and she giggles, not expecting that. Leon laughs softly and places another kiss on her forehead. "Affection may come at random, just a warning." He says with a wide smile. Saro smiles warmly at him, though she feels like her heart is about to shatter. In the back of her mind a voice is whispering to her, _Look what you've done, you finally find someone who accepts you and now they're going to be ripped away from you. You never should have kissed him last night and now you'll regret it._ Saro tries to ignore the voice but it's no use. She trusts Leon and she tries to hold on to the hope that Ms. Hilary will be understanding or at least merciful. Last night Leon had decided that after Ms. Hilary arrives with the newcomer that he would pull her aside and confess.

Saro wants to believe everything will be fine, that she will be able to stay with Leon not just as his guest but as his girlfriend. Deciding that there's no point in being depressed about it, she pushes those thoughts away and leans up on her tip toes so that she's eye to eye with Leon. "I think I can live with that," Saro says and she quickly nips at the tip of Leon's nose, causing him to flinch and laugh at her.

* * *

After their dishes are washed, Leon goes back upstairs to shower and dress. He strips off his pajama pants while the water heats up and his mind goes to bad places, or rather, just places it shouldn't go. He thinks about just moments ago when Saro was leaning against him, dressed in a pair of old pajama shorts and large T-shirt. When she turned around to hug him he got a good feeling of her breasts as she pressed herself against his chest, her erected nipples teasing him. His thoughts make a certain part him become erect as well and he debates whether or not to satisfy it. Unfortunately, it is probably best not to; it is already past eleven in the morning and he needs to stock up on food and other essentials before the newcomer arrives.

Leon curses as he steps into the warm shower, wishing he had asked Ms. Hilary for details about this new guest. If he knew whether or not they were carnivorous or herbivorous or otherwise he would know exactly what to buy in order to feed them. Sighing, he just decides to stock up on everything. Leon quickly washes himself from head to toe, not taking the time to enjoy the hot shower like he normally does before he jumps back out and dries off. Instead of leaving the bathroom to dress, Leon picks up the pair of boxers and jeans he pulled out of his closet beforehand, not wanting another mishap like last week.

Leon steps out of the bathroom dressed in nothing but the pair of jeans as he makes his way back to the closet and pulls out a plain, white T-shirt and pulls it on. He then slides his phone out of his pocket and checks the time: 11:45a.m. Leon nods in satisfaction, if he gets Saro right now and makes it a quick trip, he can get back to the house with the groceries in just under an hour. After grabbing his keys and wallet he makes his way out of his room. He steps past Saro's room and notices that the door is left slightly ajar, a sliver of space between the door and frame. Leon sees movement through the crack and curiosity gets the better of him. He quietly steps forward and peeks through, his eyes shooting wide. Through the door he sees Saro, naked from the waist up. She has her back to the door but that doesn't matter to him, her body is amazing from any angle. Her hair is tied in a braid that she has draped over her shoulder, showing off the exotic pattern of stripes on her back and shoulders. Leon has become accustomed to Saro's stripes, seeing them every time she wears a bikini in the pool and he can't help but stare at them.

He also gets a good view of her but in a pair of khaki shorts as her tail slowly drifts from side to side. One of the first things that intrigued Leon when Saro came to stay with him was her clothes, for example, her pants. All of her pants and shorts are very different as far as how they work compared to human clothes. Instead of securing at the front, Saro's shorts have a strap that secures in the back just above her where her tail begins while the rest of her clothes are the same as human clothes. Seeing this difference made him wonder how designers come up with clothes for other species, but to be honest the only thing he's focused on right now is how good her butt looks in those shorts. Saro then picks up a plain, white cotton bra and slides it on. After securing it she pulls on a pink, sleeveless shirt and lets her braid fall down the middle of her back.

Leon then nocks lightly on the door and waits for Saro to give him permission to enter. "Yeah?" Saro asks through the door and he slowly opens it, giving her a soft smile.

"We'll need to run to town before Ms. Hilary calls. Whenever you're ready I'll be down stairs." Leon says and she nods. Leon closes the door and makes his way down stairs. _You should probably enjoy going to town 'cause it might be the last time you get to for a while,_ Leon thinks at himself. He shakes his head, burying those thoughts. There's no point in worrying about that right now. At the end of the day he doesn't have to tell Ms. Hilary that they've already kissed, he just has to tell her that he wants to pursue a relationship with her. Whether or not that will cause a catastrophe he doesn't know but he's willing to bet on it. From what he's learned about the middle-aged woman she's very laid back. Hopefully she'll show some of that laid back attitude today.

A few minutes later Saro comes down the stairs and Leon steps over to the door that leads into the garage. The two car garage is spacious, especially since the only vehicles inside are Leon's dark grey, four door Jeep and his dad's old black Harley. Leon goes to driver side of the Jeep and hops in as Saro climbs in the passenger side. Leon hits the garage door opener and pulls out of the garage. Leon's house is a plantation style house with a large porch and a massive yard that is surrounded by a rod-iron fence, think vines snaking their way up the black, metal rods. Leon pulls out, turns, and drives down to the end of drive way, hits a button to open the automatic gate and pulls out onto the road, making sure to hit the gate button again.

The drive to main street Walhalla is pleasant, passing several fields for grazing animals and forested areas. As they draw closer to town the number of homes and buildings increase till they finally come into more populated side of Walhalla. Leon drives down Main Street till he spies their first destination and quickly pulls into the parking lot for the small establishment. It's a two story, brink building with a large sign printed in one window reading "Samson's choice: butcher shop". The first time Leon had taken Saro food shopping with him they had gone to Walmart as he usually did, only when he brought her to the meat section she wasn't impressed, in fact she had been baffled that Leon could make such bad meat taste so good. It's not that the meat in supermarkets is bad, it just isn't as fresh as Saro prefers. So, instead, Leon brought her to this butcher shop and she found that it was some of the best meat she'd ever seen. It's a little pricy but nothing Leon can't handle.

"Good to see ya' guys! I wasn't expecting you today." Samson says from behind the counter as Leon and Saro walk into the shop. Samson is a burly man, clean shaved and light, brown hair that he keeps shaved in a crew cut.

"Well, turns out I got another guest assigned to stay with us. Figured I'd stock up before they get here." Leon says as he approaches the counter. Samson laughs as he nods to Leon and Saro, the two nodding back in greeting.

"Sounds good to me. So, what will it be today?" Samson asks as he leans on the counter.

"Just give us double the usual. Whatever's choice cut for today." Leon says and Samson nods. Leon doesn't question Samson's knowledge of meat. On the last visit they made here Samson told them he'd been in the butchering business since he was a kid.

"I can tell whether meat is going to be perfect or not with just one look," Samson had said and Leon doesn't question it since all the meat Leon has bought from him has been the best he's ever had. Samson brings out a package of wrapped meat and places it on the scale before reading off the price. "These are the best cuts of lamb and steaks I have today. You throw these on the barbecue and season them just right your tongue will wrap around and smack the other side of your head." Samson says and both Leon and Saro laugh. Leon pays for the meat and thanks Samson again before they leave.

Leon then drives towards the edge of town where a farmers market is usually set up. In case the new guest is an herbivore Leon wants to have enough vegetables and fruit to sustain them for a while. After those two bases are covered he shoots back towards town to the local Walmart for the other essentials he needs.

Two hundred seventy-five dollars' worth of groceries and an hour later, Leon and Saro walk through the front door of the house, heavy shopping bags hanging from both of their wrists. Leon groans as he makes his way towards the kitchen to put away the food. "I hate shopping," he complains as Saro steps up behind him, her mood as chipper as ever.

"It's not that bad." She says with a soft smile but Leon just gives her a droll stare. Leon turns towards the bags he's just laid down on the counter when his phone starts to ring. He quickly slides it out of his pocket and sees that it is Ms. Hilary.

* * *

Half an hour later Leon hears the doorbell ring and Saro and him walk to the entry way. Leon opens the door to find Ms. Hilary, the newcomer standing next to her. "Good evening Mr. Williams, Saro," Ms. Hilary says with an upbeat attitude. Leon raises a brow at the woman standing next to Ms. Hilary. Like Saro, the woman is only a few inches shorter than Leon, the top of her head could come to his lips. At first glance it looks like she has thick makeup under her eyes but Leon looks closer and it's actually purple scales while the rest of her face and neck are a human skin tone. Her golden blonde hair is pinned behind a pair of pointed, purple scaled ears as well. It's also impossible to miss the large, scaly wings that are folded behind her and the long, purple tale that slithers down to the ground. He also doesn't miss that both of her hands are covered in purple scales as well, each finger tipped with a small, black claw. "This," Ms. Hilary begins, gesturing to the woman beside her, "is Serena Belrose. She's a dragonewt."

Serena curtsies to Leon and he bows in respect. "Bonjour, Mr. Williams. Thank you for allowing me to stay in your lovely home." She says in a soft, French accent though she speaks perfect English. Leon offers her a friendly smile.

"The pleasure is mine. I'll take your bags upstairs and we'll get you settled in." Leon suggests as he steps forward to take her one suitcase. "Also, if you prefer, I normally go by Leon or Leo." Leon says. As he steps forward to take Serena's luggage Saro steps onto the porch and bows to Serena with a friendly smile.

"You can call me Saro. It's nice to meet you." She says and Serena mimics the bow.

"And you as well. It's nice to have another interspecies person here. Makes me feel less out of place. Though, I was surprised when Ms. Hilary told me I was staying with a different family than what was originally planned. " Serena says and looks at Ms. Hilary with a curious look, who instantly turns sheepish.

"Well…there had been some mishaps with the paperwork and I didn't learn you were arriving till yesterday." Ms. Hilary admits. Serena's eyes go a degree wider and she looks between Saro and Leon.

"I'm so sorry for any trouble I may have caused you." She says, her cheeks blushing a bit. Leon waves her apology away with his free hand.

"No worries. There's plenty of space here." Leon says as he steps past Saro to enter the house. Leon leads them up the stairs and to Serena's room, the last one next to Saro's. Leon shows her the bathroom and closet after setting her suitcase down on the bed and Serena and smiles as she listens to Leon.

"Thank you so much. This room is more than I could ask for." She says sweetly and Leon nods with a friendly smile.

"Glad you like it. By the way, what exactly are you aloud to eat?" Leon asks as he remembers that he doesn't know what a dragonewt eats.

"Oh, I'm carnivorous. No vegetables or fruits please. Though, I do have one weakness," she says as she pulls the white and gold purse that hands from her shoulder forward and opens it. She reaches inside and pulls out a handful of candy corn and before taking one and eating it. "I love sweets. Would anyone care for one?" she offers kindly. Ms. Hilary accepts it but Saro and Leon politely decline.

"I'm glad everything turned out smoothly. Unfortunately my work is never done. It was good seeing you again, Leon, Saro." Ms. Hilary says as she slowly approaches the door. Leon's eyes go wide and he seizes the opportunity.

"Saro, why don't you help Serena unpack while I walk Ms. Hilary out." Leon says and Saro's face goes pale as she takes his meaning.

"Sure. No problem." She says as Leon leaves Saro and Serena alone.

* * *

Saro takes a small stack of jeans Serena just handed her and places them in one of the drawers of the dresser. "Thank you, Saro. It's very kind of you to help me settle in." Serena says politely and Saro gives the dragonewt a kind smile.

"No problem." Saro says nervously, knowing that Leon could be damning both of them right now. Serena shuts the empty suitcase before she takes it into the closet. She then sits on the bed and turns towards Saro. Saro finds Serena very pleasing to be around. Her golden hair somehow seems highlighted by the purple scales that cover her hands, tail, and wings. She also find's Serena's golden eyes very appealing and beautiful, not only that but the girl's sense of style is on point. She's wearing a pair of black, designer jeans, a white blouse and a silky, yellow scarf around her neck. She's also wearing a pair of white, open-toed heels that look great on her.

"So Saro, if you don't mind me asking, did you and Leon really save a boy from falling off a waterfall?" Serena asks and Saro goes a shade red as she pins Serena with a curious look.

"How did you know that?" Serena's go wide with interest as Saro's state confirms her question.

"Ms. Hilary told me about you two on the ride here. Oh I bet it was amazing to watch you and him save a child. I bet Leon looked dashing." She says in a dreamy voice that cause a spark to go off in Saro's chest. _Calm down Saro, she doesn't know anything,_ Saro thinks to herself. Serena then scoots closer to the edge of the bed, towards Saro, resting her head in her scaly hands. "So, what are his parents like? Will they be coming later?" Serena asks innocently. Saro's face drops as she looks down at the ground.

"Actually, no. Leon's parents died a few months ago. He's lived here by himself since then, his only family being his uncle." Saro admits and Serena's eyes go wide as she covers her mouth out of shock.

"Oh Lord. The poor boy," Serena says as she looks at the open door. "Living here all by himself. I'm glad you told me before I brought it up in front of him." She says with sad eyes. Saro nods, understanding completely.

"Yeah, but Leon is a strong person. He's really kind and sweet." Saro says with a soft smile as she thinks about Leon. She doesn't notice it but Serena listens to the hidden meaning behind Saro's words and a knowing smile spreads across her face.

"So, have you fucked him yet?" Saro's eyes go wide as her face burns bright red from the unexpected frankness of Serena's question.

"W-what?! Of course not! If I did he would be arrested and I would get deported." Saro denies but Serena crosses her arms, keeping the same knowing look on her face.

"Oh come on, Saro. It's not as if I would tell anyone if you had. I know we've just met but we're going to be living together so we may as well be honest with each other." Serena says with a mischievous grin. Saro looks down at the ground as Serena's words go through her head. _She does have a point_.

"Well…we did…kiss." Saro admits and Serena starts bouncing up and down on the bed, her wings lightly flapping as she claps her hands together rapidly.

"Oh I knew it I knew it." Serena says excitedly. "But no sex?" Saro shakes her head slowly without looking at Serena. She's never talked about these kinds of things with anyone else, save for when her parents sat her down when she was younger and taught her where children came from, and that had been one disturbing day. Serena then gets up from the bed and puts one of her scaly arms around Saro's shoulders. "Well, if you ever need anything: protection, advice, tips, just come to me." Serena says and Saro's interest peaks at the way she says that.

"Y-You've had…sex…with a human?" Saro asks hesitantly. Serena smiles with another mischievous look before she answers.

"Saro, I'm French."

* * *

Leon's heart is beating hard against his rib cage. He's just told Ms. Hilary about what happened yesterday with Saro. He knows he didn't have to but for some reason he just started talking and he didn't know how to shut up after he started. Ms. Hilary doesn't say anything as Leon tells her what happened or how that he doesn't care what the law says. When he finally finishes she just takes off her wide-rimmed sunglasses, cleans the lenses with the end of her shirt, and then places them back on her face.

"So, you are going to deliberately disobey the law and have an illegal relationship with this girl even though you are putting yourself and Saro in danger." Ms. Hilary asks in a flat tone. Leon gives her an uncaring face, but inside he's quivering like a puppy who knows he's about to get a spanking. Ms. Hilary sighs as she steps towards Leon, "Mr. Williams, I'm afraid you leave me no choice," she says. Leon prepares to fight her, making a plan to knock her out, stash her upstairs in one of the closets, and clean out his bank account before he takes Saro and probably Serena now as well and flee to some third-world country. Only that plan comes crashing down as Ms. Hilary captures him in a powerful hug and starts wail, tears flowing from under her glasses.

"You are such a sweet guy…S-Saro is such a lucky girl to have a man like youuuu…" Ms. Hilary says between her sobs as she rocks Leon back and forth. Leon stares off with wide eyes as he tries to process her reaction. He had been expecting something… _different_ to say the least. After what seems like forever Ms. Hilary finally lets go so that she can look at him, tears running down her cheeks as a trail of wet mucus has started to flow down the sides of her mouth from her nose. "I'm so sorry…" she says as she digs a handkerchief out of her jacket and wipes off her face. Leon stares at the woman as if she's an alien from another planet, completely baffled. "Sorry about that. I get a little emotional when it comes to romance," she says. "Well, as far as you and Saro, I'm not going to stop you. There are a lot of officials and agents that think the law is unnecessary. There has actually been a lot of cases where Interspecies persons and humans become involved romantically. Most agents just let it slide." Ms. Hilary says and Leon's eyes go wide with excitement.

"Then…Saro and I…" Leon says, unable to finish the sentence.

"Yep, you guys are in the clear. Though, when you're in public keep the romance turned down. We've gotten some complaints from 'good Samaritans' in the past and it doesn't turn out well. Just to give you a heads up." Ms. Hilary explains and Leon nods, understanding completely.

"Thank you so much."

* * *

"Nervous?" Serena asks Saro as they sit and wait for Leon to either come back or Ms. Hilary to come in and take Saro away in handcuffs. Serena's question had actual concern in it rather than teasing. While she had been a proper lady at the door, and does compose herself as one even know, Serena has a crude sense of humor that ultimately revolves around sex. While a lot of it makes Saro blush, she finds Serena very friendly and enjoys her company.

"Very," Saro answers. Serena places a comforting hand on Saro's shoulder and offers her a friendly smile.

"Don't worry. I bet he's about to come through that door and you two will be breaking headboards in no time." Serena says with a friendly smile. Saro blushes at Serena's joke but she can't get rid of the anxiety she feels. The idea of Leon getting arrested terrifies her and she doesn't know what to do. Just as she thinks there's no hope, she hears the faint sound of footsteps and a second later Leon appears in front of the door, his wrists not encircled by handcuffs. He smiles down at Saro as she looks up at him from the floor and nods. Her eyes go wide as she leaps up and wraps her arms and legs around him and he catches her.

"We're safe?" she whispers in a pleading voice and Leon nods.

"Yep. We just can't show off in public but we can do whatever we want here." Leon whispers back. Saro leans back so she can look at him with a thankful smile. She places a soft kiss on Leon's lips and he deeps it, sliding his tongue against hers and she accepts it immediately.

"Okay, I have no problem with you two fucking but could you do it elsewhere." Serena asks from the bed with a grin. Leon breaks the kiss to stare at Serena with a raised eyebrow as Saro lowers herself back to the ground, her face bright red.

"What happened to the proper lady dragonewt from earlier?" Leon asks and both Saro and Serena laugh at his confusion.

* * *

 **Okay, I know we don't get a really good look at her in this chapter, but thoughts on Serena so far? I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'm planning on having the next one up ASAP! Again, if you guys have suggestions don't be afraid to leave them in the comments. Thank you!**


	7. Chapter 7

**First thing, I want to apologize for this taking so long. I was on Spring Break when I first posted this story and now, sadly, I'm back at school. I'm still gonna try and have these chapters out ASAP but it might take a while. I'm still open for suggestions on future monster girls, if you have and idea please leave them in the comments. I also like hearing feedback and just overall comments so if you want please drop some in the comments as well. Thank you and I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

Chapter 7

Several days pass and Serena comes to fit in well with Leon and Saro. The Dragonewt accepts the fun and active atmosphere Leon and Saro create and enjoys their routine of physical activity. While Serena isn't trained in any martial arts she's physically fit enough to keep up with Leon and Saro in their daily workout routines and enjoys watching the two of them spar and train. Saro and Leon tried to teach her the basics of mixed martial arts but it proved difficult for Serena. Her wings and tail became a disadvantage while trying to copy Leon and Saro's forms and instructions. Leon also tried to introduce her to kendo but, again, her wings made it uncomfortable to wear the protective gear. Finally, Serena settled for just sparing with Leon and Saro in boxing, being that her wings and tail don't disrupt her movements.

* * *

Serena yawns loudly as a beam of sunlight peeks through the blinds. Laying on her stomach, she arches her back like a cat and stretches her wings straight above her, the scaly appendages twitching and popping as she extends them to their full length. She then lets her stomach fall back to the mattress and lets her wings gently fall down at her sides.

 _I should get up and dress,_ Serena thinks to herself as she slowly pushes herself up to sit upright. She rubs her sleep-filled eyes before she stretches her arms above her head and her tail straight back, the tip just peeking over the opposite edge of the mattress. She lets out another yawn before pushing herself up to her feet and goes to the bathroom. Her legs and arms ache as she slowly makes her way around the bed, her muscles still stiff. While South Carolina is known for its heat, the nights can still get a little chilly. Being cold-blooded the cold helps her sleep but it leaves her muscles and joints sore and makes it hard to get up and stay awake.

Serena finally makes it into the bathroom and turns on the water. She runs her scaly hands up her arms in an attempt to create a small amount of heat but doesn't help at all. When the shower finally heats up to a nice boiling point Serena climbs in as quickly as possible and lets the scalding water flow over her.

"Ohhhhh that's so much better," Serena sighs as the water loosens her muscles and she slowly feels herself becoming more awake. She lets the water wash over her for a full minute before she actually starts to wash herself, it is important for her joints to loosen up completely before she becomes to active.

When she finally turns off the water and steps out, her body completely awake and loose, she dries quickly, goes to her closet and picks out her clothes: a pair of yoga pants and a tight fitting tank top, pulls her hair into two braids that she drapes over her shoulders, puts on some light make up, and she's finally ready to face the day. She leaves the room goes down stairs to find Saro and Leon in the kitchen, Saro sitting at the table eagerly while Leon cooks breakfast.

"Good morning kitties!" Serena says as she enters the room, using her pet name she chose for the two of them. Saro and Leon are both still in their pajamas: Saro dressed in a pair of flannel pants and T-shirt while Leon is shirtless with a pair of loose fitting basketball shorts. Serena can't help but admire Leon's body, the toned muscles, the faint scars that cover his torso, arms, and a few on his face that you can only notice if you really look for them. Serena finds Leon attractive but truly has no interest in him, while she won't deny he is pleasing to the eye and a well versed in manners _and_ a gentleman, he's not her type. Serena prefers a prince-charming kind of man: soft, fair haired, intellectual, of course she's not shallow but Leon just doesn't tickle her fancy the way he does Saro's.

Leon turns to Serena as she takes a seat next to Saro and smiles. "Good morning Serena. Sleep well?" Leon asks as he continues to work at the stove.

"Yes, I did. Thank you for asking." She says in her proper, lady-like way.

* * *

Leon shakes his head without looking at Serena. To him, Serena is like two different people who someone got smacked into the same body. One minute she's primed and proper and the next she's making sex jokes and somehow incorporating sex into the conversation, no matter what the conversation is about. Leon had finally asked her about and she just said, "I'm French." Leon has met people from France before and none of them discussed sex as frequently or as in much detail as Serena and it still baffles him. Though, Leon has just come to accept it as part of her personality and just role with it. Saro on the other hand has had some difficulties with it. She can barely last a full minute of conversation with Serena before her cheeks become so red that they look as if they'll catch fire.

"So, what is on the schedule for today?" Leon asks as he shifts a stack of pancakes onto a plate and takes it to the table. Saro accepts the plate eagerly and immediately goes to smothering them in syrup. When Serena first arrived Saro had tried to control her unladylike habits around the Dragonewt but finally Serena told her not worry about it and that the only reason she acts so proper is because it's how she was brought up so it is just second nature.

"Hmm…I don't know. What else is there to do here?" Serena asks as Leon goes back to the stove. Leon thinks for a moment as he flips a pancake in on the skillet. They've already taken Serena hiking with them, something Serena thoroughly enjoyed, they've gone shopping, Leon and Saro showed her around town… _ding!_ Leon finally gets an idea as he finishes Serena's stack of pancakes and takes them to the table.

"How 'bout a picnic? It's supposed to be warm today and we could even take a walk around town." Leon suggests. The girls look at each other for feedback.

"It sounds good to me." Saro says as she swallows another bite of pancake. Serena takes another bite herself and then wipes her mouth before speaking.

"It sounds like a wonderful idea." Leon nods as he turns off the stove and joins the girls at the table with his own plate.

"Alright then." Leon says as he cuts into his food. The three eat in silence for a long time. After a while, Serena folds her hands in her lap and asks in the most polite way,

"So, did you two finally fuck last night?"

* * *

Saro almost chokes on a bite of pancakes at Serena's crude question. "Serena!" Saro complains and Serena giggles at her response. Saro looks at Leon and sees him trying to hide a smile and she instantly blushes. Growing up, Saro never really voiced her thoughts about sex. Sometimes her and her friends would talk amongst themselves about it but until now sex was always a topic reserved for privacy. While technically the house could be considered 'privacy' it's still embarrassing. Not only that but it makes Saro self-conscious; as it turns out, Saro is the only virgin between the three of them.

Serena had told both Saro and Leon that she's had…'relations' with two men, both of them humans. Leon admitted that he had lost his virginity to an old girlfriend he had in his second year of high school. When Saro finally admitted that she was still a virgin she had expected Serena to tease her more but she had actually praised her. _Good, it's best to give it to someone special for your first time. I thought the guy I gave mine to was special but things didn't turn out well._ Saro had felt much better about still having her virginity, and she felt sorry that Serena's first love didn't turn out well for her, but talking about sex so openly still makes her embarrassed.

Serena smiles at Saro's blushing face with those glowing gold eyes. "Oh come on, you have to have known I was going to ask at some point." Serena says. In truth, the Dragonewt is not wrong, Saro had been waiting for her to ask them as she has for the past two mornings but that doesn't make it any less embarrassing. Leon has come to just accept Serena's jokes and crude conversations, not letting Serena get the better of him, but Saro can't seem to just accept it. And of course Saro has thought about sex with Leon, on several occasions. The two of them have had a decent relationship so far, no complaints on her end, but the two have only done so much as kiss.

"Still, that doesn't mean I like it." Saro says huffily as she crosses her arms and glares at Serena, her face still burning red. Serena can't help but laugh at Saro while Leon shakes his head at the two.

"Alright alright, that's enough you two. Saro she's just trying to aggravate you, the best thing you can do is just not let it get to you," Leon says to Saro. "And for your information," he says, turning his attention to Serena, "we haven't." Serena giggles at Leon's interjection.

"Very well, I'll calm down a little." Serena says with a gleam in her golden eyes and Saro knows that she will stop harassing Leon and Saro about their relationship but she will continue to bombard them with sexual jokes and double entendres. Saro lets out a slow breath, she doesn't mind the jokes Serena tells, she often finds some humor in them, but at times the Dragonewt's sense of humor can become tedious.

* * *

Leon sighs as he takes out a loaf of bread and packs it into old picnic basket he pulled out of the closet earlier. After the three of them had eaten and Leon and Saro went to shower, Leon left his room and found Saro and Serena downstairs, the two of them engaged in a conversation that had Saro blushing intensely. He started to ask what they were talking about but decided not to. Leon thinks that part of Saro's embarrassment during Serena's jokes comes from Leon's presence.

While the two have been dating for just under a week, Leon has had some thoughts about sex and he's pretty sure Saro has too, being that Serena brings it up at least once a day. The two haven't said or even talked about it yet, neither of them knowing how to start that conversation. Of course Leon has no plans of rushing or pressuring Saro into any situation like that, his mother raised him better, but eventually he and Saro will have to discuss it.

Leon finishes packing the basket with the blanket and food: a loaf of bread, sliced cheese, ham, a few sliced turkey breasts, and an apple for Leon. He's also packed a few drinks into a small blue cooler he took from the garage. Leon then takes the basket and cooler to the garage and loads them into the back of his Jeep. He then goes back to the living room to find Saro and Serena still sitting in the living room, Saro's not as red as earlier but still red.

"You two ready to go?" Leon asks. The two girls look at him, Saro's face going a shade redder, and they nod before getting up. Leon then leads them into the garage before Saro goes to the passenger door and Serena climbs in the back. Leon often wonders if Serena is actually comfortable sitting in the car. When she gets in the car she lets her wings curl around her arms and shoulders so that she can lean against the back of the seat and she lets her tail drape around her hips so that it can slither along one of her legs and coil at her feet. When the three of them had taken their first trip into town together he had asked her if she would fly and just follow the car, to his surprise, Dragonewts' wings are actually two small to allow flight, which presented a long and awkward silence after that.

Leon drives through Main Street for a time before he turns off and drives them down to the park. The park is massive with a small duck pond, a large playground, a baseball diamond, basketball court, a tennis court, and even a large sandy area for volley ball. After parking and unloading the Jeep, Leon leads the girls towards a grassy area near the duck pond. He lays out the blanket in a shaded area near the tree line.

"This place is very nice," Serena says as she looks around ate the peaceful area. Leon smiles as pleasant thoughts come to him. His parents used to bring him to this park when he was little. Leon and his father would play basketball at the court, they'd have lunch and then Leon and his parents would take bread scraps and throw them to the ducks. To Leon's surprise the memories don't sting as much as they used to. Before Saro came to live with him the very thought would cause him enough pain to drive him to the ground, but now he only feels sad that his parents aren't here. All of a sudden he feels a soft, furry hand against his shoulder and he looks up to see Saro, her blue eyes filled with worry as she looks at him with a sympathetic look. He smiles sadly at and takes her hand in his before placing a kiss on the back of her knuckles.

"It is," Leon says, replying to Serena's statement. "In the winter when it snows there's always a huge group of kids who come down and have a massive snowball fight. My and my friends used to play here till our parents had to drag us back the cars." Leon says with a smile and Serena grimaces, putting arms around herself and shivering.

"No thank you. I'm not built for cold weather." Serena says.

* * *

"Wait, I thought you said you grew up in the mountains?" Leon asks as he smooths out the blanket and sits down. Saro sits beside him and Serena joins them, the three of them making a triangle on the red and white checkered blanket.

"I did. I grew up near the base of the Chaîne des Puys, it's an old, extinct volcano. My parents and I used to live in a cave system that went through one of the older parts of the volcano. My parents had turned a smaller network into a 'house'. It was perfect because people never came around and when the weather was cold there are these natural hot springs that we used to bath and swim in." Serena describes. Leon and Saro scoot closer to Serena so that they can listen to her better.

"Wait, how could your parents build a house inside a volcano?" Leon asks curiously and Serena giggles at his question.

"That's easy. Inside the deeper parts of the system you could find all kinds of precious stones. Rubies, emeralds, even a few diamonds if you looked hard enough. My father met some trust worthy humans long before I was born and set up a contract with them. They helped provide things we needed to survive and my parents would pay them in precious stones. We traded them for everything: clothes, appliances, food, anything we needed." Serena explains. Leon mouths a long 'oh' at her explanation.

"So, you guys had your own little house, in a cave, with electricity, TV, and everything?" Saro asks in disbelief. Serena laughs well naturedly, shaking her head.

"No, we didn't have everything. Most of our food was either anything we could cook over a fire or eat out of the package. As for TV, I hadn't actually watched a television show until about two years ago. Instead we used a battery powered DVD player to watch movies in the evenings."

"That's cool. So, where does your 'proper lady' behavior come from?" Leon asks. Serena smiles at their barrage of questions but doesn't hesitate to answer.

"Well, Dragonewts a said to be descendants of dragons. Dragons were seen as the king of beasts in legends and were considered a sign of royalty and nobility. So, normally, Dragonewts are brought up to behave as noble. Some Dragonewts are self-absorbed because of our linage but not all of us are. My parents had always taught me that our linage meant we should conduct ourselves properly but we should never look down on others because of it."

Leon and Saro nod in understanding and Serena smiles at the two, feeling better after sharing. She stretches her arms and wings wide, letting her muscles loosen up before she pushes herself to her feet. "Alright, enough sitting around. Let's do something fun." Serena says, her tail swaying back and forth eagerly. Leon and Saro smile as they push themselves up, too. Leon bends down at the basket and rummages around inside before he pulls out a disk made of green plastic.

"What is that?" Serena and Saro ask simultaneously. Leon looks at the two with a raised eyebrow.

"You guys haven't seen a Frisbee before?" he asks and the two shake their heads. Leon shakes his head with a sad smile before he lightly tosses the disk so that it spins in the air towards Serena. She panics as the disk comes at her but she manages to awkwardly catch it. Leon laughs at Serena's catch before he explains. "It's easy. All you have to do is throw it to each other just like I did just now." Leon explains. He then takes a few paces back and gestures for Serena to throw it to him. Serena looks at the disk curiously for a moment before she mimics Leon's action and tosses the disk to him and he catches it easily.

"There ya' go. Saro," Leon cries as he toss the disk to Saro, the green saucer flying just above her head and she jumps to catch it with both hands. She laughs as she falls back down on her feet with the disk clutched in both hands.

"This is easy." Saro says as she runs back towards the duck pond before turning and throwing it back towards Serena. The Frisbee flies high above Saro's head but Serena doesn't falter. Her mind now using her predatory instinct, she stretches out her wings and jumps while simultaneously flapping her wings in one, massive push of air to launch her just high enough to catch the disk. Serena falls back to the ground, her feet stinging as she lands back on the ground. As she stands back up with the Frisbee in her hand she notices Saro and Leon's incredulous stares. She then realizes that she may have gotten a little too intense and starts to blush.

"That was awesome!" Leon cries before he raises his hand for her throw it to him. She smiles at them both, no longer feeling self-conscious and tosses the disk towards Leon.

* * *

The three of them toss the disk between themselves for a while, each of them getting bolder and trying to do trick shots as they progress. Leon smiles as we watches the two girls laugh and enjoy themselves. He notices a few people stop to stare as they pass by. For some people seeing Interspecies people is not common unless they're watching TV. Any onlookers simply stop for a moment to watch them toss the Frisbee and then go on their way, their curiosity filled.

Leon tosses the Frisbee to Saro and then she tosses it to Serena. The disk goes over Serena's head and she jumps to catch it, only it slips through her fingers and flies a few feet away. Serena goes to retrieve the disk when she stops and stands up straight. Leon looks at her with a confused look until he follows her line of sight and sees what she's looking at: three men, about the same age as Leon, are approaching her. Their dressed like stereotypical gangsters: baseball caps and bandanas, low riding pants, the three of them look _Grand Theft Auto_ extras. Leon gets a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach and makes his way towards Serena in a brisk walk.

The three stop a few feet from Serena, their faces screwed up in curiosity, only Leon can sense that is it innocent. Serena is staring at them as they talk amongst themselves, her face pale and fearful. Leon draws closer and he can hear what their saying, "…didn' know we had one those monster girls livin' in town. Damn, those wings are fuckin' weird." One of them says, Leon guesses he is the leader of the trio as the other two flank him from behind. He's dressed in a pair of low riding jeans, a dirty wife-beater, and a black bandana tied around his head. Honestly he looks like a character from a gangster movie, the stupid one that always ends up dead.

"I don' know man. ' think I could get past 'em for a good time with her." One of the flunkies says in a deep voice. He's the biggest one of the three, a tall, African American wearing a green T-shirt with some band logo Leon isn't familiar with. The other one is Latino kid, probably the youngest, and stays quiet while the other two laugh at the African American's joke. Leon finally reaches Serena and places himself between her and three newcomers. Leon eyes them with a calm but cold stare, not showing them how angry their rude comments has made him.

"I think it would be better if you three went somewhere else." Leon says flatly. The leader steps forward his face a crooked smile as he puts his hands in his pockets, as if Leon's presence doesn't affect him.

"Well well, what we got here? This yo' bitch?" he asks and Leon has to detain himself mentally before he attacks the scrawny, pale skinned bastard.

"No, she is not my 'bitch'. I'm her host family. Now, I'll say it again, I think you three should go somewhere else." Leon says again, not altering his expression or tone. The leader looks back at his friend, laughing lowly. The taller one laughs with the leader but the young one is staring at Leon, as if he's trying to remember something about him. The leader turns back to Leon with a crooked laugh, chuckling to himself.

"Well no', why don' you make us." The leader says as he brings hands up as if to shove Leon. Leon does hesitate to act, just as the scrawny boy goes to push Leon, Leon shoves his hands aside and pushes the leader backwards, hard. The leader stumbles back and then looks at Leon with an angry sneer. Without a word, the leader approaches him more hastily and draws back one of his boney fists. Just as the fist starts to fly towards Leon, Leon brings up his left arm and stops the bunch with his forearm. Not missing a beat, Leon steps forward and throw two, quick, straight jabs into the leaders face. _Crack crack_ , Leon feels two, satisfying snaps as the leaders nose breaks, erupting in a fountain of blood that covers Leon's fist.

"Fuck!" the leader cries as he stumbles back, his hands covering his face. Leon doesn't relent as he steps forward and delivers a round house kick to the leaders jaw. The kick lifts the leader off the ground and sends him twirling to the ground, cupping his jaw and face.

"Fuck this shit!" the taller flunky growls as he approaches Leon. Just as he draws back one of his beefy fists, Leon catches the larger man by the wrist and pull him in close before Leon drives his knee into his stomach. The larger man gasps and groans as the attack nocks the wind out of him and he falls to his knees, his arms going around himself. Leon then plants a foot on the larger man's shoulder and gives a hard shove, sending the flunky rolling across the dirt. Leon then turns to the younger boy, expecting him to attack as well. Instead, the young Latino boy just stares at Leon in fear and awe.

"Holly shit…it's…it's Bloody Fist! It's Bloody Fist Williams." The boy says as he starts to back away. The leader looks up at the name and suddenly his eyes are full of fear. Leon then looks at the bigger one of the three and he, too, is looking at Leon in fear. Leon sighs heavily as he looks at the leader with a deadly stare.

"Get you and your friends here out of my sight. I catch you guys near her," he indicates Serena with a thumb over his shoulder, "or my other guest, and I'll be wearing your teeth around my neck on a wire." Leon says angrily and the leader nods in fear. Shakenly, the two injured men pull themselves up and the three quickly take their leave.

* * *

After the three 'gangsters' left and Leon cleaned himself up, the three of them quickly packed up their picnic and made their way back to Leon's Jeep. Serena had made jokes as they packed up and got in the Jeep to leave, "I don't know if I should be shocked, scared, or highly turned on by what just happened" she said, receiving a pinned stare from Saro. Leon could tell she is a little shaken from the incident but he thinks she will be alright.

Leon lets out a loud sigh as he pulls out of the parking lot and pulls out on the main road. The three of them stay quiet for a long time before Serena finally breaks the silence. "Bloody Fist Williams?" Leon looks at her out of the corner of his eyes.

"What?" he asks.

"Bloody Fist Williams. That's what that kid called you." Serena explains and Leon nods.

"Yeah?" Leon says, ignoring her implied question.

"Well where did the name come from?" she finally asks, slightly irritated. Leon lets out another sigh and he feels Saro place a hand on his shoulder as she leans forward from the back seat.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." She says but Leon can guess that she probably want to know just as bad as Serena. Leon lets out another long sigh as he pulls the Jeep up to a red light.

"I got the name after my third MMA tournament. It was a local thing for high school fighters, nothing too spectacular. Long story short, I made it to the finals, me and the other finalist went at it for a long time but eventually I won. When we started I had been wearing white gloves but when the fight was finished they were stained red and I got the name 'Bloody Fist' For a while a lot of people called me that but I thought everyone forgot about it by now but I guess not." Leon says simply. Serena leans towards him from the passenger seat, intrigued by the story.

"Did you beat him that badly?" Serena asks.

"No. He gave as good as he got. To be honest, half the blood on my gloves that day was mine, too." Leon admits, and he means it. The other finalist in that tournament had been very strong, the only advantage Leon had against him had been that Leon had been faster. In the end the two of them had beaten each other black, blue, and red all over; almost to the point that the referees were about to just stop the match and call it a draw. In the end, the other finalist had worn himself out in the last round and collapsed, he wasn't seriously hurt but his body was so sore and he was so winded that he couldn't continue. Had the other finalist been able to fight longer Leon might not have won that day. Serena smiles as she leans back in her seat.

"Well thanks for coming to my rescue, Bloody Fist." She says with a snicker. Leon gives her droll stare out of the corner of his eye as he drives down Main Street.

"Don't call me that," Leon says and Serena just laughs.

"Why not, Bloody Fist? I think it's a cool name. Dangerous and foreboding, sexy too." She says. She turns in her seat to look back at Saro and the Dragonewt wiggles her eyebrows at her. Saro looks away as she starts to blush. Serena turns back around and leans back into her seat. "Yep, I think Bloody Fist is your new nickname for now on." Serena says with a satisfied sigh.

"No it's not." Leon retorts.

"Yes it is." Serena says banteringly.

"No, it's not." Leon says sternly.

"Yes, it is." Serena retorts again. Leon sighs heavily again as he realizes there is no arguing with her.


	8. Chapter 8

**Finally! The full chapter is now up and I hope you guys enjoy it. I know someone said in the reviews something about a threesome. I don't want this to become a full on smut story so I'm going to try and keep it tasteful. But you can count on a threesome and some girl on girl stuff later on so don't worry ;) Also, I'm debating on whether or not to introduce a new character either next chapter or chapter after next. I'm still deciding on what to make the next girl so please keep dropping suggestions. I have NO idea when the next chapter will be up but I will have it done ASAP.**

* * *

Chapter 8

A few weeks have passed since the incident at the park. Leon, Saro and Serena keep the incident to themselves, not wanting to scare Sebastian or Ms. Hilary. Summer is slowly reaching an end as September arrives and the weather slowly starts to cool. Serena now wears thick jeans and jackets before leaving the house. While the weather is still hot to Saro and Leon the Dragonewt can feel the slightest difference in temperature and it immediately sends her metabolism spiraling and because of the colder nights she has started going to bed much earlier than normal.

Leon and Saro's relationship has not changed since it has begun. After Serena retires for the night, normally around nine o'clock, the two will spend a few hours awake with each other; lounging on the couch, watch a movie or whatever anime has caught Saro's fancy, and they always make time for a romantic kissing session.

* * *

Saro walks behind Leon as the two finally make their way up stairs to their rooms. Serena had gone to bed two hours ago, the poor Dragonewt can barely keep her eyes open when the three of them sit down for dinner at night. At this rate she'll be hibernating for the winter. Leon stops in front of Saro's door and turns to face her with a soft smile and she returns it. Saro doesn't hesitate as she slowly puts her arms around his neck and places a soft kiss on his lips. He immediately puts his arms around her and deepens the kiss.

Saro's head spins as she feels his tongue slides against hers and she moans softly. Saro can't get enough of Leon; his taste, his scent, it all makes her intoxicated to the point that she just wants to drag him to her bed and spend the whole night with him. _You_ have _been together for a while now_ , a voice says in the back of her mind but Saro ignores it. Yes, they have been together for almost a month now but she doesn't want to rush this. She wants their first time to be special and perfect.

Leon finally pulls back to break the kiss and Saro actually whimpers from the absence of his lips. Leon laughs lowly and smiles at her, his dark blue eyes warming her.

"Come on, you need me to kiss you that bad?" Leon asks in a whisper and Saro nods excitedly. Leon laughs again before he gives her another kiss, a quick one before he releases her. "Good night." He says as he turns to go to his room.

"Good night." She replies before she enters her own room and closes the door. She lets out a long sigh after she lets the door close, her body aching to touch Leon again. "Why can't I just be like Serena?" she asks herself. Saro already knows what Serena would say, _either put on some sexy underwear or just strip naked, go to his room, shut the door behind you and crawl into bed with him._ Truthfully the idea makes her heart race but Saro can't do it. For starters, she doesn't really have any 'sexy' underwear and the idea of just walking into his room naked is just…no. Saro lets out another sigh before she goes to the dresser to pick out her pajamas for the night.

Suddenly, Saro's eyes shoot open as a wave of unimaginable heat explodes through her body. She doubles over, wrapping her arms around her stomach as a stabbing pain erupts through her body and is quickly replaced with an intense, burning heat that seems to envelope her. Every inch of her skin feels so hot and sensitive, even the soft carpet she's stepping on is sending small waves of pleasure up through her feet and straight to her center.

"Damn it…not now…" Saro complains as she tries to fight through the intensity. Saro has experienced this before, enough times to know how to counter act it. She stays in this doubled over positon till the heat dies down a few degrees, leaving her breathless and weak. Her body is not as sensitive as it was a moment ago but now she has an overwhelming hunger that stems from her center. She quickly makes her way to her bathroom and pulls out her toiletry bag. She digs through the bag till she finds the item she's looking for: a small, round, clay sphere. The clay is a dark brown with a swirling design carved on the surface. She quickly unscrews the top off to inspect the contents.

Inside is a dark green gel, a special product that is made in her village. She curses as she sees that the bottom half of the sphere is almost empty. Her mind starts to spin as she realizes that she only has enough to last three days if she's lucky. While her current condition will only last for five days, two whole days without it will be agonizing at best and complete hell at worst. _You could always ask Leon for help._ A rush of warmth washes over her as she thinks about that possibility. _No, I won't do that_ , she thinks at herself. This is something she's dealt with before and she can get through it. _Can't I?_

Saro's thoughts instantly start to think about Leon again and she's assaulted by another wave of warmth. She thinks about the day that Leon fought those three trouble makers at the park, how he looked so fierce and powerful, how he easily beat those two who tried to attack him. Saro shudders as another wave rushes over her and she can't fight it anymore, taking the clay sphere with her, she goes back into her room and climbs on to the bed. Setting the sphere aside she peels off her jeans and panties. Her lower half now bare, she dabs her middle and index finger in the gel before she lowers them to her nether lips.

Saro grits her teeth as she spreads the gel up and down the lips, the folds of flesh aching before the gel takes effect and soothes them. She does this for several minutes before cautiously moving her fingers deeper and slowly entering herself. Saro moans softly as her fingers slide against the inner walls of her vagina, her condition makes the walls so sore and tight until she applies the gel to loosen and soothe them. She sighs as her body loosens up and she feels her fingers become coated with her own juices, a sign that her current state will be over soon. She then prepares herself as she moves her fingers to her clitoris. Right now, Saro's clitoris is swollen and red, the nerve ending extremely sensitive to the point that any sensation will either cause extreme pleasure or agony.

She controls her breathing as she remembers how to do this best. Calmly, she stars to work her fingers in a slow circle around the bulb, doing her best not to actually touch it yet. After a moment she just barely touches the clitoris to see if it is ready and when she doesn't feel any extreme sensation she slowly starts to spread the gel over the bulb. She automatically lets out a gasp but doesn't stop as her fingers massage the gel into her clitoris, the gel sending shivers through her body while the massaging sends shots of fire through her veins. As she works her body towards ecstasy she imagines Leon, his fingers slowly pleasuring her instead of her own, his soft lips pressing against her mouth as she moans against them. She imagines what he would taste like as she ran her tongue down his hard, sculpted body.

"Leon…Leon…" she breathes as she imagines his lips on her body, his tongue tracing her stripes as he works his way down till his tongue reaches her center. Her fingers start to work more vigorously as she imagines Leon leaning over her, his lips just inches away from hers as she cradles him between her thighs. She imagines what it would feel like for him to enter her, their bodies joined in passion. In her mind Leon is trusting his hips against her, driving himself deep inside her body as she gasps from pleasure, her fingers keeping time with his hips.

"Leon…Leon…Le-AH!...Auuuugh!" she cries as lighting shoots through her bloody, her back arching and her tail curling from the sheer force of her orgasm. When the pleasure finally subsides she lays there, her fingers still nestled between her nether lips as her legs, hand, and arm ache, her head spinning and her body covered in sweat. She doesn't worry for Leon or Serena hearing her, Leon had told her that the walls are pretty thick. _You can yell all day and not hear a thing from the other room. But if you pound on the wall someone would probably hear that._

"Four more days…" she says to herself, her voice hopeless. In order for her to survive the next four days she has to be able to work herself to an orgasm, something her body won't allow without the gel. If she can't…there's no telling what will happen.

* * *

Leon slides the tray of cinnamon rolls into the oven before he sets the timer. He then goes to the stove where sausages are now done frying. Neither of the girls are up yet but Saro will probably be down in a few minutes and Serena shouldn't be much longer. Leon smiles as he thinks about the poor Dragonewt, in the evenings she practically has to slap herself in order to stay awake. In truth he thinks the only reason she bothers to fight it is because she enjoys his cooking. It's probably the only reason she wakes up, too.

Leon turns as he hears footsteps behind him and to his surprise it's actually Serena, dressed in her favorite, dark blue, fuzzy house coat she's been wearing lately and the pair of matching slippers. Her hair is loose this morning, the golden strands flowing down just below her shoulders. She slowly makes her way to the table before she sits down and sighs heavily.

"Good morning…Leon." She struggles to say, her voice thick with sleep. Leon can't help but smile as he shakes his head at her, while she's clean and her make up is done as neatly as normal she looks exhausted.

"Morning, Serena." He then looks to the doorway that leads into the entry way, wandering where Saro is; she's normally up by now. Leon fills a plate with the sausage, eggs, and two slices of toast and takes it to the table. "Here, I'm gonna go check on Saro." Leon says as he sets the plate in front of Serena. The Dragonewt's eyes become a little livelier when she sees the food in front of her and Leon leaves her to her food. Leon makes his way up stairs and nocks lightly on Saro's door.

"Y-yeah?" he hears Saro call from the other side.

"I was just checking on you," Leon calls from the hallway. He hears movement on the other side before it opens to reveal Saro. She's dressed in a tight fitting tank top and pair of pajama shorts. Her hair is a mess, strands sticking up like she was electrocuted and her face is extremely red. Leon's eyes go wide at her appearance, she looks like she's been crying. "Saro are you okay?" Leon asks as he pushes the door open and puts his hands on her sides.

"I'm fine." She says hesitantly, her tone only increasing his worry. Leon places a hand on her cheek and turns her head up to look him in the eye.

"Are you sure? You don't look fine." He says and then he feels the heat that is radiating from her cheek. "Saro your face is burning up. Are you sick?" Leon asks quickly and Saro shakes her head and takes Leon's face to get his attention, her blue eyes locking with his.

"Leon, I'm _fine_. Really," she says, her eyes seeming to vibrate as they stare at each other. Leon looks at her for a long moment before he finally accepts her answer, he can also see that her face has begun to return to normal as well.

"Okay…" Leon says doubtfully and she gives him a soft smile. She puts her arms around his shoulders and kiss him softly. Leon instinctively puts his arms around her and she deepens the kiss, her soft moans music to his ears as her tongue brushes against his. Leon doesn't know a better feeling than when their like this, it is the best feeling in the world. Then to Leon's surprise, Saro deepens the kiss even more. Normally she's slow, hesitant even as her tongue explores his mouth but now she's kissing him feverishly. Leon's eyes go wide as she hungrily kiss him, her hands now running through his hair; he can also feel as she presses her body against him. His mind goes blank as he feels her soft breasts pressing against his chest as her tongue explores every inch of his mouth.

Suddenly, Saro pulls back. She steps back from him, enough to still have his hands on her back. She looks down at the ground between them as they both breathe heavily. "Saro…that was…" he starts but then stops as he sees Saro slowly shaking her head.

"I'm…I'm sorry…I lost control for a sec-" Saro starts but then Leon lifts her head up with his hand and kisses her softly and quickly. Her eyes are wide when he pulls back, her face is incredulous.

"Saro, you don't have to be so hesitant all the time. If you want to lose control, then just lose control." Leon says with a soft smile and Saro just stares at him with wide eyes. Leon can't help but start to laugh at her face and she blushes even worse than when she opened the door just a moment ago. Leon then places a quick kiss on her burning cheek before he starts back down the hallway. "I've got cinnamon buns in the oven. Come down when you're ready." Leon says before he starts down the stairs, Saro smiling softly as he goes.

* * *

Serena takes another bite of her sausage as Leon comes back into the room and she watches him go to the stove with sleep filled eyes.

"Is she awake?" Serena asks. The Dragonewt is tired, the only thing keeping her awake being the wonderful smell of food and her growling stomach. After she finishes eating she plans on brewing a cup of coffee to help wake her up. She had taken a scolding shower before leaving her room but after walking out of the bathroom a chill ran up her spine and drained any energy she had.

"Yeah she's awake. She'll be down in a second." Leon says as he takes out a tray of cinnamon rolls out of the oven. Serena licks her lips as she spots the morsels and she actually starts to wake up slowly as she watches Leon drizzle the glaze over them, her hunger for sweets spurring her back to life.

"You spent a few minutes up there, Leon. Did you two have a quickie before breakfast?" Serena asks as she rubs one of her eyes with a mischievous grin. Leon shakes his head before he turns around to answer her, a half smile decorating his face.

"No, Serena, we did not have a quickie." Leon retorts, matter-of-factly. Serena giggles to herself, wishing she could get a rise out of Leon like she can Saro.

"Well, I guess that is a good thing. Your first time should be more special than that." Serena says and Leon nods in agreement. "Although, you two need to stop beating around the bush. You've been together long enough." Serena says and Leon just shakes his head again without looking at her. Serena hears soft footsteps from behind her and turns to find the fluffy-headed Saro as she comes in and sits in her usual spot at the table: directly in front of Serena.

"Are you _sure_ you guys didn't fuck already? That hair looks like it saw some action last night." Serena asks jokingly. Normally, Saro would blush and act self-consciously but instead Saro just gives Serena a nasty glare and looks away, her eyes going to Leon as he prepares another plate. Serena stares at Saro confusedly, she's never seen Saro act like this before. As long as Serena has known the Tigress, Serena hasn't seen Saro do anything rude and even said anything rudely to someone. Serena just dismisses it as Leon returns to the table with two plates on one of his arms and a plate of cinnamon rolls in the other.

"Well, unfortunately there's not much to do today. The forecast says it's going to pour today." Leon says as he sits down to eat. Serena immediately takes one of the cinnamon rolls and takes a bite, the wonderfully sweet flavor bringing her back to life.

"That's fine by me. I don't have the energy to do much today." Serena says in a more lively tone as she takes another bite of her cinnamon roll. Serena looks over at Saro and starts to chew slowly, the Tigress looking like she has a black cloud hanging over her head. "Saro, are you okay?"

"Yeah," Saro says with a sigh, her circular years drooping with disappointment, "I was hoping to get outside today." Serena gets her trademark mischievous smile.

"Well, you and Leon could always play inside today…maybe in the bedroom." Serena says jokingly.

"Would you stop with the jokes already!?" Saro snaps angrily, making Serena and Leon jump in their seats as the Tigress pins Serena with an angry glare. Serena stares at Saro in confusion, while normally she does ask her to stop at some point, Saro never reacts like this. She's never acted angrily towards Serena whenever she made those jokes before and when their alone she will even sometimes make a few minor ones of her own.

Saro looks back and forth between Serena and Leon, her face going from anger, to slight irritation, to her own face of shock. She places a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide as if she realizes what she just said. "I…I-I'm sorry…excuse me." Saro says quickly before she gets up from the table and makes her way out of the room. Leon quickly gets up and Serena watches them go. After Saro steps out of the kitchen she bolts into the entryway and up the stairs so fast that Serena could barely see her move.

"Saro! Wait!" Leon cries worriedly as he makes his way into the entryway and Serena gets up to follow them. She slowly makes her way up the stairs, her body still not able to move very quickly. When she finally makes it to the top of the stairs she sees Leon standing at Saro's room, knocking lightly and speaking through the door. "Saro please open the door. We can talk about this." Leon says calmly.

"No. Just leave me alone, Leon. I need to be by myself for a little while." Serena hears from the other side of the door as she approaches Leon. Leon sighs heavily, hanging his head. Serena places a hand on his shoulder to try and comfort him but she can see it does not do much to help. Serena then steps to the door and knocks lightly.

"Saro. Can you please come out? We just want to know if you are okay." Serena says calmly, truthfully she's not angry at Saro at all, only worried.

"No. I'm sorry I-I yelled at you Serena. I just…I ne-eed to be alone right now." Saro says from the other side of the door, her voice breaking as if she's crying. Serena really becomes worried now and she quickly tries to think of a way for Saro to open the door. Her eyes go wide when she gets an idea and she jerks Leon closer to her by the arm, almost pulling Leon off his feet.

"Go down stairs and get two of those cinnamon buns. I'm going to see if she'll let me in by myself." Serena says and Leon nods before quickly making his way down stairs. Serena steps towards the door again and leans close. "Saro, would you feel better if it were just me? I could come in and make Leon go downstairs or something." Serena says through the door, hoping Saro will take the bait. Serena doesn't get a reply immediately but finally Saro answers, her voice still shaking, "I…I-I don't know…" Serena looks back down the hall to see Leon approaching with two cinnamon buns on separate saucers. She quickly takes them from him and then mouths to him, _Go back down stairs._ He gives her two thumbs up, his face questioning as he mouths back, _are you sure?_ Serena nods and reluctantly Leon goes back down the hall and disappears down the stairs. "Saro, I have two cinnamon buns with me. You didn't really eat anything so why don't I come in and we just talk and eat?" Saro asks through the door.

Serena doesn't hear anything for a long moment before she hears the a metallic _click_ and the door cracks open, revealing a tear filled, bloodshot, blue eye as he looks up and down the hall. "Okay," Saro says as she steps back to open the door for Serena and she smiles at her own success. She quickly makes her way into the room and Saro quickly shuts the door behind her. Serena turns to look at Saro and her heart instantly breaks. Saro's hair is still a mess, the poor girls face a burning red and her eyes puffy and swollen as tears run down her face. Serena quickly sets the saucers down and pulls Saro into a tight hug. Saro hugs the Dragonewt and starts to sob softly, her tears soaking into Serena's housecoat. "I'm so-so sorry, Ser-Serena." Saro says against her cries. Serena strokes her soft, striped hair soothingly as she holds Saro against her.

"It's okay Saro. I'm not angry with you, but Leon and I are worried terribly." Serena says as she pulls back. Saro wipes her tears off with her hands before she looks at Serena. Serena takes Saro by the hand and leads her over to the bed and sits her down, then she goes back to retrieve the cinnamon buns and comes back to sit next to Saro. "Okay, let's eat and then I want you to tell me what's the matter. Is that alright?" Saro hesitates but she finally nods and takes one of the cinnamon buns.

"Okay," Serena says as she takes a bite of her cinnamon bun, "what's caused this change in you?" Saro takes a small bite of her food before she finally answers.

"I'm…in…heat." Saro says hesitantly Serena cocks her head to one side, giving Saro a questioning look.

"So, you're on your period?" Serena asks and Saro sighs heavily.

"No, I mean, it's kind of the same thing but it's different. Tigresses only go into heat a couple of times a year. When we do, our bodies are basically yelling at us to…mate…and reproduce." Saro explains. "When we don't we can get pretty irritable." Serena nods as she finally understands.

"So basically you're horny and since you aren't having sex you get aggravated." Serena says, over simplifying the situation. Saro blushes heavily and nods, averting her eyes. "So why don't you just sleep with Leon? I'm not trying to make a joke I'm asking sincerely." Saro wipes her eyes on her furry forearm before she answers.

"Because I don't want to have my first time just because my body is forcing me to. I want to give myself to Leon because I want to and only then. Not only that but…the only time a Tigress can get pregnant is when she's in heat." Serena raises an eyebrow at the last part.

"Saro, you know what birth control is, right?" Saro gives Serena a droll stare before she continues.

"Of course I do. But I still don't want to while I'm in heat." Saro says again and Serena raises her hands in defeat.

"Fair enough. So, you're just going to be irritable for the next…" Serena gestures with her hand to let Saro finish the sentence.

"For the next four days, yes. But that isn't even the worst of it." Saro says and Serena leans forward, listening intently. "Tigresses can relieve the symptoms for a while by…um…climaxing." Saro admits and Serena shrugs, her face confused.

"So just masturbate." Serena suggests but Saro shakes her head.

"It's not that simple. When I'm in heat my body is literally forcing me to mate. I could try for hours but it wouldn't be enough to push me over the edge. The only way for me to climax is for someone else to. If I go without though, it'll become painful and even agonizing. Basically every muscle in my body will contract to the point of pain." Saro explains and Serena's eyes go wide as she finally understands, but then a question rises in Serena's mind.

"So, if I may ask, how many times have you been in heat?" Serena asks. Saro blushes a little before answering.

"I started when I was fifteen."

"Okay, so how have you been dealing with this for the past three years if you're still a virgin?" Saro's face goes another degree of blush before she answers.

"In my village, the adults learned how to make this gel that soothes our bodies and makes it easier for us to climax. I had brought some with me from home but…" Saro trails off. Serena motions for Saro to continue and she takes a deep breathe before continuing.

"Last night, I went into heat and I went to get the gel. After I…used it…I passed out and left the container open. When I woke up the gel had dried and now it's completely useless." Serena finally nods in full understanding.

"So wha-" Serena starts before Saro cries out suddenly, crossing her arms over her stomach as she falls down against the bed. Serena goes to sit over Saro, her face thick with worry as she stares helplessly at Saro. "Saro! What can I do? Is there anything I can do?" Serena askes frantically. Saro grits her teeth as she squeezes her eyes shut, her face now a dark, burning red.

"Yes…there is something you can do…" Saro says through gritted teeth. Serena leans forward so that she can listen better. "Get out." Serena leans back and looks at Saro in confusion.

"What?" Saro slowly pushes herself up to brace herself with one arm, her breathing heavy as she keeps her eyes clinched shut.

"Remember when I told you…that I like men and women…?" Saro asks and a knot forms in Serena's stomach. It had been two weeks ago when Saro had admitted that she was bisexual. Serena hadn't cared, of course; Serena had experimented with women in the past but she found that men were more pleasing to her. Saro finally opens her eyes, only her pupils are in the vertical slit-form of a hungry predator. "If you don't get out…you're going to be my first time…whether you like it or not." Saro says in a low, heavy growl.

Serena's face goes deathly pale and she bolts from the room almost fast enough to leave a vapor trail. She slams the door shut behind her and pins her back against the door to keep it shut, even though the door opens inwards from the outside. _Mother of God she is terrifying._ Serena has never been more afraid of someone than just now. But her mind instantly replaces her fear with worry, Saro cannot help how she's acting. Her body is forcing her to behave like this and there's nothing Saro can do to stop it. Suddenly, Serena gets an idea and her mouth curls into a mischievous smile.

* * *

"You want me to do _what_?!" Leon asks as Serena stares at him with an annoyed look, her arms crossed over her chest.

"I want you to go upstairs and have sex with Saro." Serena says again, now tapping on her clawed fingers on her arm. Leon runs his fingers through his hair as his face blushes more.

"Okay, I know you joke a lot about sex but I don't think that's going to help Saro."

"But it will. I told you, she's in heat." Serena says. After she had come back down stairs the Dragonewt had found Leon sitting on the couch, a worried look on his face. Before he could ask her what had happed she simply grabbed Leon by the arm and tried to drag him back upstairs, saying that he was going to 'give her the best fuck of her life'.

"But how does that have to do with me and her having sex." Leon asks, flailing his arms around. Serena sighs heavily before she gives a simplified version of Saro's explanation of her condition. Leon slowly starts to understand why Serena is trying to push this on him, but he's not completely convinced that it is the right thing to do.

"Okay, fair enough. However, I still don't like the idea of doing this why she's basically out of her mind. To me that's no different than taking advantage of her." Leon argues. Serena rolls her eyes before she counters.

"Leon, the girl threatened to take _me_ before I came down to get you. Trust me, if there is any misinterpretation of consent tonight it'll be yours. Not only that, but before she threatened me it looked like she was in pain. She also said that in order to get through this she has to climax and her body won't let her do it herself. If that's not bad enough then if she can't it will actually hurt her." Leon's eyes go wide at Serena's words. It can't help as an image of Saro and Serena in bed goes through his mind and it does turn him on, but it quickly disappears as his arousal is replaced with worry for Saro.

"Well…" Leon breaks off, unsure of what to do. The more Serena tells him the more he can't argue with her; Saro _needs_ this. However, there is still one other factor that is holding him back: Serena mentioned that when a Tigress goes into heat is the only time they can get pregnant and unfortunately Leon doesn't have any protection for himself. _There's more than one way to make a cat purr._ Letting out a long sigh, Leon gives Serena a defeated glare. "When this is over, I don't want to hear any jokes, comments or questions out of you, okay?" Serena smiles as Leon finally surrenders and nods.

"Fair enough. Now, go get her…tiger." Leon growls at Serena and she has the decency to act scared. Leon expels a long breath before he ascends the stairs. He slowly makes his way to Saro's room and knocks on the door.

"Saro…can I come in?" Leon asks through the door to no reply. He knocks again but still receives no reply. Leon growls, deciding there is no time to be hesitant. "Saro, I'm coming in." Leon says before she slowly pushes the door open and walks in. Leon's eyes are instantly shocked when he sees Saro; Saro is curled into a fetal position, naked from the waist down, one of her hands pressed between her legs as the other is curled in a fist that is pressed against her opposite shoulder. Her face is blood red as her face is frozen in a wince of pain. "Saro!" Leon gasps as he quickly shuts the door behind him and quickly goes to the side of the bed. Saro opens her eyes slightly at the sound of Leon's voice and with her free hand she tries to cover herself with the comforter on the bed. Leon stops her and takes her free hand in his and she captures it in a tight, clawed grip, her claws slightly digging into his skin but he ignores it.

"Leon…please…" Saro squeaks out as tears start to form in her eyes. Leon's heart breaks as he sees the amount of pain Saro is in, had he known _this_ was her condition he wouldn't have hesitated when Serena told him. Leon places a soft kiss on Saro's forehead.

"Shhh, it's okay. I'm gonna help you." Leon whispers and Saro looks at him through tear filled eyes. Slowly, Leon pushes Saro so that she is laying on her back. Her legs are still bent and clasped shut, her hand still pressed at her center. Leon crawls onto the bed and stands over her on his knees, his heart aching for her. She's looking at him now, her blue eyes rimmed in bloodshot, filled with fear. "You don't have to be scared Saro. Everything is going to be fine." Leon says with a soft smile, trying to reassure her. She winces but returns a slight smile. Leon takes a breath as he removes his shirt and tosses it on the ground. When he does, he doesn't miss how Saro's eyes change. Instead of the soft, caring eyes he normally sees her eyes are now like a predator when it's on the hunt, her pupils now vertical slashes as she stares at him with a hunger. At that moment Leon is terrified but he doesn't react to it, she needs him now and he's not going to run.

Leon leans down and takes the rim of Saro's shirt in his hands, his mouth suddenly dry. He looks at her with a questioning expression and she nods before she lifts both of her arms up, keeping her legs bent and closed. Leon slowly pulls the shirt over her head and tosses it away, his eyes instantly going to Saro's body. She completely naked now, her bare chest and abdomen exposed to him. Her breasts are of moderate size, as he's been aware of since before they became a couple. The two, fleshy globes are also patterned with stripes, the dark wisps swirling around the mounds, leading his eyes to the soft pink areolas and nipples. He eyes skim down the rest of her body, her stripes leading a path down to her center that is still blocked to his few by her legs. He's seen her abdomen before when she's worn bikinis in the pool but seeing her like this is a whole new experience. Leon's eyes go up to meat Saro's, her eyes now back to their normal state. "You're beautiful, Saro." He whispers but her face doesn't change as she continues to stare at him. He leans down beside her and places a kiss on her lips, a soft kiss at first but then quickly becoming a hungry battle between their tongues as they fight for dominance.

Leon moans softly as he feels Saro put her arms around him and feels her bare body press against him. He's still in the same pajama pants from earlier and he knows she feels his erection against her thigh, the soft flesh brushing against him and making him moan. _Snap out of it boy. You can't go too far unless you want to explain to Ms. Hilary why Saro starts throwing up and having cravings in the near future._ Leon gathers his resolve before he gives Saro one more, extremely long kiss before he breaks away from her lips and quickly moves down to her neck, his tongue following the stripes on the soft flesh. Leon inhales Saro's scent as she moans from his play, his tongue teasing the tender flesh of her neck as he can feel her pulse against his tongue. He slowly makes his way down to her collar bone, then lower to her chest, and finally he reaches the soft incline of her right breast.

Saro inhales loudly as Leon takes the left breast in his hand, softly squeezing the mound as her hardened nipple teases his palm. As he attends to the left with his hand he makes a path of soft kisses around her right, making sure to kiss and lick every inch of the breast before he finally encircles the nipple with his lips. She cries out as he starts to suck and lick the puckered flesh, being sure to give the left nipple as much attention with his fingers as he does the right with his tongue. Leon moans as he feels one of Saro's hands run through his hair. He feels the tips of her claws prick at his scalp but doesn't react, not wanting to worry her. After a few minutes he kisses his way down to the valley between her breasts and then repeats the process as he captures her right breast with his hand.

After the second breast has been attended, Leon sits back on his knees to look down at Saro; her eyes are closed now, her mouth hanging open as she breathes heavily. Her eyes open to slits to look at him. He doesn't break eye contact as he places a hand on both of her knees and she nods knowingly. She closes her eyes and slowly opens her legs, her hands going to her face. Leon can't help but stare at Saro's center, the lips burning red and swollen, practically screaming for attention, the swollen clitoris easily visible, but Leon can't think about that as seeing her body increases his arousal to its highest. The stripes of her body continue down her abdomen, leading a path straight to her center. The dark lines inscribed on her hairless pubic mound, her nether lips and the insides of her thighs are beautiful and give her body a very exotic look that drives his body mad with lust. Leon doesn't say a word as he slowly crawls between her bent knees, up her body and slowly moves her hands so that he can kiss her again.

He pulls back slowly from the kiss to stare at her beautiful eyes. "Leon…I'm scared…" she says, her breathing labored. He can't help but smile at her as he places a hand on her burning cheek and she leans into his palm.

"Don't be. What I've got in mind won't hurt you." He says as he places another kiss on her lips. He then crawls back down her body to just below her breasts where he starts to kiss his way down her stomach. Saro moans softly as his lips trail down her and past her bellybutton, lower down to her waist, between her thighs, and finally he reaches her mound and she gasps softly. Leon then spreads her legs a little wider with his hands before he places a kiss on Saro's nether lips. The Tigress gasps loudly as Leon begins to kiss up and down both sides of her center as he curls his hands around till they rest on the inside of her thighs, his strong, calloused hands gently massaging her.

 _Easy Leon,_ _don't go to fast,_ Leon thinks to himself, from the look of her center he could tell it was agitated and he needs to soothe it before he actually starts to pleasure her, otherwise he could actually cause her pain. He pulls back for a fraction of a second to inspect her folds and sees that they are no longer an angry shade of red but now pink, moistened by her own juices now. Leon then starts from the bottom of the lips as he slowly slides his tongue up her center as Saro gasps and moans loudly from the affection.

Leon moans at the taste of Saro's body, a sweet taste that leaves him intoxicated and begging for more but he doesn't forget the situation. This isn't for him, as much as he enjoys it. Leon gives Saro a few more long licks before he starts to spell out the alphabet on the outside of the lips with his tongue. "LeON!...Ah! Wha-! What are yo-! Oh! Oh!" Leon can't help but smile as Saro struggles to speak against her pleasure. He can feel her muscles straining as he continues to spell. "Leon…PlEAse…I-I nee-need to…Oh. Oh!" Saro struggles to say but Leon understands. He finishes spelling the M as he slowly starts to lick between her folds again before he moves to the new target. He places a soft kiss on her swollen clitoris, causing her to gasp softly before he runs his tongue against the glowing, pink bud, causing Saro to gasp loudly. "Leon! You-You're killing me!" Saro breathes as he continues to tease her clitoris with his tongue. Leon doesn't say anything as he locks his lips around the nerve cluster, causing her to cry out.

Leon sucks on the Tigress's clitoris slowly and gently as she writhes and bucks her hips against his mouth. Leon moans softly at the taste of Saro's body, the vibrations causing Saro to gasp from the sensations. "Leon…Oh god! I'm so close, I'm so close…please don't stop please." Saro breathes and Leon starts to suck harder and use his tongue more, running the full length of his tongue over her swollen clitoris. Saro gasps and moans as Leon works her closer and closer towards ecstasy. "Leon! Leon…I'm…I'm cumming…I'm I'm!" Saro cries out as her orgasm finally mounts, her back arching as Leon keeps his lips locked on her clitoris. Her body trembles as her eyes roll backwards until the orgasm passes and she collapses back on the bed. She lays there, breathing heavily with Leon still between her legs. "Leon…that was…incredible." She says with bliss.

"I'm glad," Leon says in a straining, scratchy voice from Saro's tail being wrapped around his throat, squeezing tightly to the point his face has gone red from lack of oxygen. Saro looks down at him and gaps when sees her tail and quickly releases him. He gasps for breath, rubbing at his neck. Saro quickly sets up on her knees, her face full of worry as she looks at him.

"Leon are you okay? I'm so sorry." She says as he rubs at his neck. Leon smiles up at her as she looks at him with worry.

"Don't worry about it." He says as he clears his throat. She slowly starts to return the smile. He places a hand on her cheek and pulls her into a soft kiss. He pulls back from the kiss and kisses her on the other cheek. "Feel better now?" Saro instantly blushes as she looks down at her naked body, crossing her arms over her breasts. Leon can't help but laugh and she glares at him. "I'm sorry. It's just adorable when you act like that." He says and her glare doesn't waver. He smiles widely at her and pulls her down to lay beside him and instantly curls up against him.

"Thank you Leon. I really needed that." Saro says as she lays her head on his shoulder. Leon places a kiss on the top of her head as he curls one arm around her shoulder. "I know. Though you should probably thank Serena too. She kinda had to convince me to come up here." He says and she covers her face with one hand.

"I have to apologize to her at some point." Saro says sadly and Leon can't help but laugh.

"You mean for threatening to make her your first time, willing or not?" Leon asks with a wide smile and Saro's face goes dark red.

"She, she told you that?" Saro asks embarrassedly and Leon can't help but laugh.

"Yeah. Don't worry though, I think it just made her worry about you more." Leon says and she buries her face into his shoulder. Leon laughs softly and strokes her hair softly. "It's okay. Plus, I told her not to say anything about this later." Leon says and Saro looks at him with soft eyes.

"Thank you." He smiles at her and kisses her brow.

"Don't worry about it." He says. Saro suddenly jumps when a loud _boom_ of thunder rings out and a second later they can hear rain start falling against the roof. "I there's the rain." Saro settles again and kisses his bare shoulder.

"You think we should go down stairs? Let Serena know we're okay?" she asks and Leon thinks for a moment.

"Nah. Honestly, I just want to stay here for a few." Leon says and Saro blushes softly and she snuggles closer to him.

* * *

 **Hello everyone! As I said at the top, I will be introducing a new girl in the next chapter or the chapter after next. However, I have received so many suggestions and have so many of my own favorites that I just cannot decide. So, I have decided to let you, my readers, decide for me. Below this message will be a list of the four species I narrowed down to for the next character. Starting tomorrow, Monday 4/4/16, I will be accepting votes for the species of the next character. If you wish to vote for one of the four listed below simply leave your vote in the comments or Private Message me. Note, if you have no real interest in the four listed below then leave a suggestion in the comments and I will try to use it in future chapters. Also, I will be providing a link to a description of the species for those who are not familiar with them. Note that the character may not fit the website's description exactly but will be similar overall. I will be accepting votes until this Friday, 4/8/16, and will begin the next chapter that following Saturday. I hope to see which of the four you guys want to see. Thank you!**

 **Barometz**

 **OOmukade**

 **Scylla**

 **Manticore**

 **Link for descriptions: monstergirlencyclopedia/wiki/Category:Mamono**

 ***There were problems with the link. Just copy/paste the link (underlined) above into Bing or Google and it will be the first option to come up***


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello Everyone! Feel's like I haven't been on here in forever! Anyway, I first want to thank all my readers for getting this story to over 5000 views! I never thought this story would get so many readers. I also want to give a special shout out to my followers and favorites, you guys are the best and I hope you will stay with me. I'm still taking suggestions for future characters and girls so please leave them in the comments. Thank you and I hope you enjoy! Also, WARNING: SEXUAL CONTENT IN THIS CHAPTER. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED**

* * *

Chapter 9

Leon blinks his eyes open as a stray beam of light shines on his face through the blinds. With his right hand he rubs the sleep from his eyes while his left stays curled around a sleeping Saro. He looks down at the sleeping Tigress and smiles warmly at her peaceful figure. Yesterday, after Leon and Saro had finally redressed and returned to the kitchen, they found a waiting Serena who eyed the two with an evil, knowing smile. Leon had given her a glare and she just raised her hand, not saying a word. The three of them finished their breakfast and then went about their normal day. That evening though, Saro had another 'episode' due to her condition and Leon gladly helped her. That night, the two spent their first night together, sleeping in each other's arms.

Leon lets out a quiet yawn before he closes his eyes and smiles, tightening his arm around Saro's shoulders. Just as sleep is about to reclaim him, his brow quirks up as he hears an annoying, repetitive beeping sound. He opens his eyes and looks over to the table by Saro's bed and sees her phone laying there, the screen completely blank. He listens for a moment and then realizes that the sound is coming from outside. He gently but quickly pulls his arm out from under Saro, trying not to wake her and then makes his way to the window quickly. He pulls one of the blinds down to see a large, white work truck pulling up to the side of the pool in the back yard and his eyes shoot wide open. "What the _fuck_!?"

* * *

"I'm so sorry I'm so sorry I'm so sorry," Ms. Hilary says over and over again, her hands clasped in front of her face like she is praying as she bows every time she apologizes. Leon ignores her as he signs another form and hands it off to one of the works who then goes back into the house, where several men in construction uniforms are coming in and out. Leon, Saro, Serena, Ms. Hilary and Sebastian are standing outside in the drive way where several large work trucks are parked as workers go towards the house, carrying tools and supplies.

"I'm so sorry I'm so sorry I'm so sorry! I thought I had sent you an email or something to let you know they were coming but I guess I forget to. Please forgive me." Ms. Hilary says again, still bowing with her hands up. Leon sighs heavily, after he noticed the first truck in the back yard he ran out the door, waking and startling Saro, and ran down to the entryway where several of the workers had started to come in with their tools and supplies. Before he could ask any of them any questions several of them presented him with clipboards that had forms for him to sign. After he signed several of them he finally called Ms. Hilary and then his uncle. Now, the five of them stand out in the driveway, Saro dressed in a loose fitting T-shirt and pajama shorts, Serena in her favorite housecoat with blanket wrapped around her, and Leon in a pair of pajama pants and shirtless.

"Okay! I get it, you're sorry, you are forgiven. However, you still haven't told me why these guys are tearing my house apart." Leon says, irritated. Ms. Hilary finally straightens herself before she explains.

"Two days ago I received a form for a host family transfer. Unfortunately, you were the only one available." Ms. Hilary says as she scratches her head awkwardly. "I would have given you at least a week's notice but this was an emergency." Leon starts to speak when another worker comes up to him and hands him another clipboard.

"Please sign this and we'll start moving ourselves out of here." The man says and Leon looks at him with a raised brow.

"You guys are done already? What did you do?"

"We converted the pool into a saltwater pool with a special filtration system. We added another room to the down stairs, waterproofed it, added a smaller saltwater pool with the essentials, and coated all the hardwood and marble floors with an added friction polish." The worker listed off as he counted on his fingers. Leon, Saro, Serena, and even Sebastian stared at the worker with their mouths hanging open.

"You guys did all that in an hour?!" Leon asks, amazed. The worker tips his hard hat to Leon with a cocked grin.

"We specialize in heavy duty, time sensitive jobs." The worker says. Leon doesn't say a word as he signs the clipboard, not bothering to question the man any further. After he signs the form, all the workers begin quickly cleaning up and returning to their vehicles. Thirty minutes later there is no sign that the workers had ever been there to begin with.

Leon and the others make their way into the house to inspect what the team had actually done and find hardly anything. Leon notices that floor no longer feels as slick as it once did, the pads of his feet seeming to slightly stick to the cool surface. Leon then goes to the back yard where he finds the pool area exactly as it had always been, only he notices the strong smell of saltwater coming from the pool.

"Saltwater pool," he says under his breath as he goes back into the house. He goes down the hallway that leads under the stairs, towards where his parent's bedroom is and notices that there is a door in the hall that wasn't there before. He opens the door and stops dead in his tracks when he sees inside. The inside reminds him of a large bathroom, the floor covered with red tiles until it reaches a large pool that takes up the majority of the room, the smell of saltwater filling his nostrils. He steps towards the pool and peers down into its depths. He figures the pool has to be about ten feet deep, but what catches him off guard is that there is what looks like a bedroom set sitting at the bottom. "I'm assuming that the new guest is an ocean species?" he asks as he turns to look at Ms. Hilary as Saro, Serena, and Sebastian look around at the large room.

"Yes, her name is Lily Octopoda. She should be here tomorrow morning."

* * *

After Sebastian and Ms. Hilary leave, Saro, Serena and Leon go about their usual daily activities while also preparing the house for their new guest. They don't bother to clean a guest room since the newcomer wouldn't be needing one, and instead clean the new, waterproof room and the adjacent bathroom.

* * *

"AAH! Leon! Yes, yes…almost…yEESSS!" Saro cries as Leon works her to an orgasm, his tongue spreading lava through her veins. Her breathing ragged, she lays against the soft pillows of her bed, completely naked as Leon gives her a few more slow licks. Saro can't believe just how good he is at that, his tongue sends electricity through her body with every lick and every orgasm makes her feel like she will explode. If it were up to her she would keep him between her thighs forever. "Leon…that was…amazing." She breathes. Leon looks up at her from between her thighs and licks his lips with a devilish smile.

"I'm glad you think so." He says before he crawls back up her body and kisses her lips softly. Saro puts her arms around his shoulders as she tries to dominate his mouth with her tongue. She moans when she feels his erection press against her thigh as they kiss. She can tell just from feeling it that Leon is a decent size and the thought of having his member inside her is almost enough to spur her into a frenzy. If she weren't in heat she would make love to him for the rest of the night.

Saro opens her eyes as a thought occurs to her: the previous night and tonight Leon has worked hard to push her over the edge without asking anything in return. That fact makes her heart swell for him, but simultaneously, a stab of guilt pierces her heart as well. Leon has given her so much over the short time she has lived with him while Saro has offered very little in return. Yes she teaches him some of her fighting techniques from her village but compared to the current situation that hardly compares. Suddenly, she realizes that she _can_ return the favor. _Why didn't I think of this sooner_ , Serena thinks to herself. She had seen it many times online and Serena had even given her detailed descriptions of her past experiences with the subject.

Feeling bold and wanting to show Leon her appreciation, Saro suddenly shifts her weight and rolls Leon onto his back without breaking the kiss. Leon lets out a gasp against her lips as she drapes her naked body over him, her soft breasts pressing against his chest. Saro pulls back from the kiss so that she can stare down at him with a seductive smile. "What's that face for?" Leon asks with a nervous smile.

"I want to try something." Saro says simply. Without a word, she slides one of her fur covered hands down between the two of them till she reaches Leon's erection. Leon gasps and then moans as Saro starts stroke him through the thin material of his basketball shorts. Saro smiles as he stares at her, breathless as she runs the palm of her hand over his shaft.

"Shit…Saro you…don't have to…" Leon struggles to say as Saro smiles down at him.

"I know. But you've been taking care of me, so it's only fair." She says. She leans down and starts to kiss a trail down from his chest and over his hard, sculpted abdomen, continuing to stroke him the entire time. When she finally reaches the waistband of his shorts she hesitates, she's never done this before and, besides online, she's never seen a real man's body before. She glances up at Leon who has his head thrown back as she continues to stroke his erection. Seeing him in that state emboldens her and with trembling hands she slowly pulls the shorts down to free his erecting.

 _My lord,_ she thinks to herself as she stares at Leon's body. He is at least eight inches long, maybe even nine. She can see one or two veins snaking their way up the tawny shaft till they reach his circumcision scar. To her surprise as well, she can't help but notice that he's completely shaven below the belt while his torso is covered with short, prickly hairs that he keeps groomed and shaped appealingly. Hesitating for only a moment, she wraps her hand around his shaft ever so gently and slowly starts to stroke him. He lets out a hiss from her touch and she stops automatically, looking up to him with worry.

"Did I hurt you?" Saro asks worriedly but Leon shakes his head, his eyes clinched shut.

"No Saro…your hands are just…really soft and feels…really good right now." He breathes and her face blushes and she resumes her stroking. She watches with curiosity as his cock becomes even harder and the tip becomes a satisfying shade of pink. After a few moments she quickens her speed a little, causing Leon to gasp and she smiles up at him, pleased with his response. After a few minutes of stoking him she notices a clear liquid start to gather at his tip and absentmindedly she leans forward presses her tongue to his tip. Saro's eyes go wide at the salty taste of Leon's flesh, whenever she had first started to wonder about sex she had always thought about what a man would taste like but Leon far surpasses anything she could have imagined. Closing her eyes, she starts to swirl her tongue around his tip, moaning softly as she lets the sweet and salty taste of Leon intoxicate her.

She ignores Leon's gasps and moans as she starts to explore his erection with her mouth, slowly running her lips and tongue along his shaft, tracing the veins with the tip of her tongue, and when she gently scrapes her extended canines against his tip he lets out a gasp and arches his back to the point that she thought he was about to climax. She even drifts below further down to his soft sac, gently rolling the tender flesh in her hand and running her tongue over his testicles before returning to his shaft.

"Fucking…heLL! Saro…you're KIlling…me." Leon struggles to say. Saro smiles and gives Leon another long lick up his shaft. She softly kisses the tip before she slowly takes him into her mouth. Leon curses loudly as his tip enters her lips, her longue scrapping against it. Saro can't believe just how big he is, at this point her mouth will have to unhinge in order to take his full length. Discarding the thought, Saro relaxes her mouth and slowly starts to suck on his tip, getting a feel for his body before she takes in more of him. She continues this process several times, Leon crying out in pleasure, till she finally is able to take his full length without over exerting her jaw. She also recaptures her soft sac in her hand, the flesh tight from his approaching release.

"Saro…Saro I'm about to come…shit…FUUUCK!" Leon cries out as he finally reaches climax. Saro's eyes go wide as she feels a pulsing in her hand, as if she's holding a beating heart, as Leon's body convulses and her mouth his filled with a new taste. She's caught off guard by the sudden filling and flinches but quickly becomes accustomed to it as Leon's release fills her mouth. The taste is strange to her but she finds it very pleasing. She strokes his shaft a few times, making sure to catch every last drop as Leon lays against the bed, breathing heavily and covered with sweat. After she is sure is his empty she swallows and gives his tip a quick flick with her tongue before she crawls back up Leon's body.

Her eyes go wide as he pulls her into a fierce and sudden kiss, his fingers driving their way into her hair as his lips assault hers. He pulls back with a tired face and she looks at him with a startled expression. "That…was…incredible." He breathes and she smiles before snuggling up against him, their bodies completely connected.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it." Saro says and places a soft kiss on his collar bone. He smiles brightly at her and kisses her forehead, tightening his arm around her shoulder.

"I did." Leon says with a soft smile. "We should probably get some sleep. Who knows what's waiting for us tomorrow."

* * *

"So, do we know anything about this girl? Other than her name?" Serena asks as she sits on the couch, an electric blanket draped over her legs. The three of them had decided on a 'fend for yourself' breakfast since the three of them needed to be dressed and ready for the new arrival. Serena takes another bite of her heated pop-tart as Leon starts to answer her.

"Not really. I looked up a little about Scylla yesterday, all I really found out is that they're octopus-like and they value their privacy." Leon says as takes a bite of his cereal. Saro sits next to him on the other side of the table. They are all dressed decently, Leon in a nice, button-up shirt and jeans, Saro is dressed a pair of dark red capris with a light blue blouse while Serena is dressed in a pair of slim-fitting sweat pants and her warmest hoodie.

"When are they supposed to get here?" Saro asks, taking a bite of her microwaved breakfast sandwich. Leon looks at his phone to confirm the time Ms. Hilary had sent him earlier.

"Her plain is supposed to land in an hour and then she'll call when their on their way." Leon says. As he said, an hour later Leon receives a call from Ms. Hilary to let them know she and the newcomer were on their way. Thirty minutes later the doorbell rings and Leon, Saro, and Serena go to welcome their new housemate. Leon opens the door to find Ms. Hilary, dressed in her usual black business attire. Beside her stands who can only be Lily Octopoda.

"Hello everyone," Ms. Hilary says with a smile. "This is Lily Octopoda. I think you guys will get along just fine." Ms. Hilary says, gesturing towards the newcomer. Lily is very strange and yet very beautiful, her hair is a bright shade of red that flows down her back and two larger tendrils run down, over her shoulders and down her sides. Her skin is a dark mocha color and gives her a very exotic and tropical look. She's wearing a dark grey hoodie and pleated skirt that goes down to where her thighs end before separating into her long, octopus-like tentacles that are the same shade of red as her hair, four tentacles on both sides. Lily eyes the three new faces with a reserved and shy face before 'stepping' forward, her tentacles sliding forward and pulling her body along.

"Um…hi. It's nice to meet you." She says almost in a whisper. Leon steps forward with a kind smile and offers her his hand. She hesitates but takes it and shakes his hand, keeping her eyes on his hand. On closer inspection it turns out that Lily's hair is actually more tentacles, only they have no suction cups on the undersides.

"Nice to meet you too Lily. I'm Leon, the host." Leon says kindly before stepping out onto the porch. Saro steps out next and bows in greeting. Lily awkwardly copies the gesture before Saro introduces herself.

"You can call me Saro. It's nice to officially meet you, Lily." Saro says before she steps back and allows Serena to meet the new comer."

"Bonjour, I'm Serena. Welcome." Serena says with a kind smile. Lily looks up at the Dragonewt and Serena is able to get just a glimpse of her eyes, for a second she thinks them to be completely black but she then sees that her pupils are flat and horizontal, just like an octopus. Lily quickly breaks the eye contact keeps her head tilted down.

"Um, thank you." She says. Ms. Hilary steps forward with a small suitcase and hands it to Leon. Serena and Saro then step back so that Leon, Lily, and Ms. Hilary may enter the house, Lily's tentacles working like a conveyer belt to pull herself along the floor.

"Um, Leon, may I have a word with you for a moment while Saro and Serena take Lily to her room?" Ms. Hilary asks. Leon nods with a smile before he nods and hands the suitcase off to Saro.

"Sure," Leon says as Serena and Saro lead Lily to her room.

"I think you'll like your room. Ms. Hilary hired some special construction team to build it just yesterday. It was surprising how fast they built it." Saro says but Lily doesn't say anything as she 'walks' behind the Tigress. Serena gets a weird feeling from the Scylla, while Saro can be shy this girl seems completely closed off, while she's greeted them and seems nice she's barely even looked at them or even really said anything at all. Saro leads them into the waterproof room and sets Lily's suitcase by the door before allowing the girl to enter and the Serena.

"This is a very nice room. Thank you for allowing Ms. Hilary to build it for me." Lily says in almost a whisper.

"Oh no problem," Serena says. She watches as the Scylla pulls off the sweatshirt to reveal a black, skin tight suit, almost like a scuba-suit. She pulls off the skirt as well to show that the suit is more like a one piece bikini, but what Serena is focused on is the massive orbs of flesh that seemed to be trapped underneath suit. The black material hugs every curve of her body and seems to emphasize the well-endowed chest of Lily's. Serena can't help herself as she stares at Lily in awe and a small mix of jealously, while Serena's breasts are small D cups and she has always been proud to have them, Lily's seem to be well above that size, either breast easily bigger than Serena's head. Lily turns towards Saro and Serena and the Dragonewt quickly stops staring before she notices.

"Is there, um, somewhere I can put these?" Lily asks and Saro steps forward.

"Yeah," Saro says as she takes the clothes and leads Lily over to the closet that is the same size as the ones on the top floor. "This is your closet. I know, it's huge. The bathroom is the other door, there," Saro says, pointing to the door on the opposite side of the room. Lily nods as Saro takes a pair of hangers off the clothes rack and hands up the discarded clothes. Just as Saro closes the closet door, Leon and Ms. Hilary enter the room.

"Well, I'm afraid I can't stay everyone. It was nice seeing you all again." Ms. Hilary says. She turns to Lily before saying, "If you need anything just give me a call," and the Scylla nods slowly. "Alright. Bye everyone, take care." She says to everyone before she leaves the room and walks herself out.

"Alright guys, would you two," Leon starts, gesturing to Saro and Serena, "mind giving Lily a tour? I gotta check on something in my room real quick and I'll join you guys in a sec." Leon says. Saro nods and smiles at his girlfriend widely. "Thanks guys. I'll be right back." He says before exiting the room.

* * *

Leon pushes open the door of his closet and makes sure to shut the door behind him. What Ms. Hilary had told him had been disturbing to say the least, but now he understands why Lily's transfer had been called an emergency. Leon walks to the end of the closet where a wooden cabinet sits against the wall. The cabinet is composed of a pair of large, double doors at the top, a smaller pair on the bottom, and a drawer separating the two sets of doors.

Leon pulls open the drawer and inspects the contents, when he's satisfied that everything is in order he slides the drawer closed and bends down to open the double doors on the bottom of the cabinet. He takes out the largest of the items inside: a 1901, sawed-off, Windchester 12-gauge shotgun with a pistol grip. Leon takes the gun out of anchors and inspects the weapon, he hasn't taken it out in a while now, having had no reason to. He cocks the lever and pulls the trigger, making sure that the firing mechanisms still work properly and smoothly and nods when they work to his expectations. Hopefully, if everything goes well, Leon won't have to use it.


	10. Chapter 10

**I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry. I know it's been ridiculously long since I've posted but work is exhausting. Anyway, I will try to have Ch. 11 up ASAP and I will NOT let it take this long either. Also I want to thank you all for getting this story over 10000 views! If you have comments or feedback please leave it in the comments. Thank you!**

* * *

Chapter 10

"This is the pool area," Saro says as she leads Lily and Serena out the glass, double doors that lead outside. Lily looks around quietly at the patio area, now dressed only in her skin tight body suit and a blue hoodie over that. "Soon it'll be too cold to use it but it still gets pretty hot here for now."

"Says the warm blooded girl," Serena says as she shivers, her scaled wrings wrapped around herself in a futile attempt to keep warm. Saro gives the Dragonewt an apologetic smile and then turns her attention back to the Scylla.

"You don't seem to be affected by the cold either, Lily." Saro inquires curiously, assuming that Lily is cold blooded.

"Um, no…At certain depths the ocean can get very cold so this is nothing." She says, keeping her eyes on the ground. Saro frowns at Lily, she's only been here less than an hour but she acts very closed off and reserved, like she's locked in a metal box. Saro understands being shy but this girl seems completely distant; though, Leon had said earlier that Scylla prefer their privacy, perhaps this is just her personality? Speaking of Leon, Saro hears the screen door open and she turns to see Leon coming out to join them.

"Sorry 'bout that." He says to the three of them. Saro gives him a warm smile as he joins them.

"It's fine. We didn't make it far in the tour anyway." Saro says.

"Yeah, now can we _please_ go back inside before I collapse and go into hibernation?" Serena asks irritably, her whole body trembling from the "cold". Leon and Saro shake their heads before Leon leads the girls inside to continue with the tour. Lily follows along quietly, not really saying much or giving much interest into anything unless she has a specific question. Leon then leads them down to the basement and shows Lily the large training room where Leon, Saro and Serena spend some of their time, mostly Saro and Leon. When she walks into the large training room, Saro notices Lily's eyes widen a degree, but only slightly. She looks around the room and takes in the sight and when she spies the display case full of Leon's trophies she immediately goes over to inspect it. The Scylla turns to Leon and, to Saro's surprise, actually makes eye contact with him.

"These are all yours?" she asks and he gives her a proud smile.

"Yeah, I've beaten some pretty big guys in my short time." Leon says, almost boastfully. Saro looks at him for a moment, confused. Leon has never boasted about his past winnings. He's always been reserved and modest about them until now. Lily turns back to look at the case for a moment longer and then steps back, her eyes going back to the ground. "Well, that pretty much ends the tour. Why don't I fix some lunch and then we'll figure out what to do today." Leon says as he gestures for the three girls to follow him back upstairs.

"The only thing I plan on doing today is curling up with my electric blanket." Serena complains.

* * *

Saro finishes the last bite of the fried chicken tenders Leon cooked for the four of them. They are simple, frozen tenders from a bag but with a touch of seasoning salt and some honey mustard they are just fine. Leon sits beside her, eating his own food while Lily and Serena sit on the other side of the table, an electric blanket wrapped around Serena's shoulders as she eats. Saro looks at Lily for a moment, wanting to ask her about herself but not sure how to.

"So, Lily, why don't you tell us about yourself?" Leon asks suddenly and Saro almost jumps at the sudden sound of his voice. She looks at him out of the corner of her eyes, seeing his mouth turned up in a friendly smile. She then looks at Lily who seems hesitant before answering.

"Um, what uh, what do you want to know?" she asks awkwardly. Serena finishes another bite of her food before she says,

"Just tells us everything, where are you from, for starters?" Lily hesitates, again, before she answers.

"Well, I was born near a group of islands in the Pacific. I think humans call it Awaii?" she says and Leon laughs at Lily's pronunciation.

"I think you mean 'Hawaii'. It's actually a very pretty place." Leon says. Saro doesn't know for sure but she thinks she notices Lily's cheeks turn a slight shade of pink.

"Um, yeah. I never really met any of the humans who lived there. Sometimes I would hide near the boat docks when I was little and watch the fishermen." Lily says. Saro glances at Leon again and sees that his face is still the same, friendly smile. She doesn't know why, but something seems very strange about Leon right now, something she can't quite identify.

"So, did you have a homestay before you came here or is this your first?" Serena asks as she continues to eat. Saro doesn't miss the sudden change in Lily's demeanor at the question, the Scylla seems to go ghostly pale and her tentacle-like hair seems to slither around her face, almost like she's trying to hide in the red, fleshy strands.

"Um…Y-yes, I lived with someone else before I came here." Lily says simply, her voice seeming to crack. Both Saro and Serena look at Lily now, their faces curious but also concerned.

"Well!" Leon says suddenly in a loud, announcing voice, causing all three of the girls to jump a degree. "I think that's enough questions for the moment. After a flight I doubt Lily wants to be bombarded with questions." Leon says. Saro and Serena look at Lily and she nods very slightly, her hair still gathered around her face. _Okay, something's going on here_ , Saro thinks to herself.

"Um…If no one minds, I-I'd like to go lie down for a little while." Lily says softly.

"No problem." Leon says with the same friendly smile that Saro is quickly becoming annoyed with for some reason. Leon gets up from the table, walks around, and takes Lily's empty plate before taking it to the sink to be rinsed. "You go ahead and rest Lily. One of us will wake you if we need to." Leon says, giving the girl that same smile. Saro doesn't miss how Lily meets Leon's eyes again and surprisingly her hair seems to loosen up and actually pull back to reveal her face, but only slightly.

"Thank you," she says before she gets up from the table. "Thank you all for the tour. I hope we can become good friends during my stay here." She says in an almost depressing tone that makes Saro both uneasy and very curious at the same time. She then pushes her chair back under the table and leaves the room without a word, Saro watching her as she leaves. Her eyes then go to Leon, who is at the kitchen sinking with Lily's plate. She doesn't know why he's acting so strangely around Lily, but Saro has a bad feeling about that girl.

* * *

"So, what is your opinion of her?" Serena asks as she sits on the other side of the sectional, her lower body wrapped in her electric blanket while her upper body is wrapped in her wings. After Lily went to her room and the three of them finished their own food, Leon washed the dishes and told Saro and Serena that he was going to the basement to train. He offered for them to join him but they opted for some time in front of the television. Saro looks away from the show that Serena and put on the TV before she answers her question.

"Honestly, I don't know. Something seems…off, I guess." Saro says.

"'Off'' is one way to put it. That girl is hiding something, I don't know what but I can feel it." Serena says. Saro doesn't want to agree completely with Serena, to judge someone so quickly is very wrong in Saro's eyes, but Lily doesn't give the Tigress many options, not to mention that Leon seemed…odd around her as well.

"And I hate to say this, Saro, but Leon was acting really weird too." Serena said.

"I know. I want to ask him about it but I don't know how." Saro says. She looks over at the Dragonewt, who is now scooting across the sectional to Saro's side, doing her best not to unravel the cocoon of blanket and wing that she's made around herself. When she finally gets to Saro, Serena leans in close so that she can whisper to her.

"I don't want to jump to conclusions, and I don't think Leon is that kind of guy, but he seemed to be acting a little _too_ friendly toward Lily." Serena says. Saro instantly knows where Serena is taking the conversation and immediately pins Serena with an angry glare.

"What are you insinuating?!" she snaps and Serena actually jumps a whole seat cushion away from the angry Tigress. Saro quickly regains her senses, taking deep breaths to calm down. "I'm sorry Serena. I'm still…you know. After tomorrow it should be over." Saro says apologetically. Serena holds her hands up, looking very scared of Saro as she straightens herself.

"It's fine, no problem, no harm done," Serena says nervously as she scoots closer, but not too close, to Saro. "I don't want to upset you Saro, all I'm going to say is that you may want to keep an eye on your man." Serena says simply. Saro doesn't even want to humor the idea of Leon looking at another woman. The two of them have been through a lot in the short time they've been together, not just as a couple but as friends as well. Leon wouldn't do such a thing, especially not with a girl who only just arrived…would he?

"Serena, you don't really think Leon would do that? I know Leon and I haven't been together that long but I don't think he would do such a thing." Saro says sincerely. Serena shrugs her shoulders before she answers.

"Truthfully, no. I'm just saying maybe you should keep an eye on him." Serena says simply. Saro nods absentmindedly as Serena's words run through her head. _Leon wouldn't do that…_

* * *

Saro lays against her sheets, drenched in sweat from Leon and her play for the night. Earlier in the day Leon, Serena, Saro, and Lily had finally rejoined in the living room for some more quality time with the newest member of their group. Like before, Lily didn't say much during the conversation. Saro and Serena tried to learn more about the Scylla but every time they asked her a question about her past she would tense up and become very nervous, and even more concerning, Leon would always change the topic abruptly, which didn't help Saro's feelings toward him and the new comer.

Leon licks and kisses his way up Saro's naked body before his lips find hers again and he kisses her softly. Saro kisses him back but her mind isn't on him right now; well, it is but not in the way it should be. Right now he's acting normal but every time he goes near Lily he changes, like his full attention goes to Lily and Saro can't help but wonder why. Leon pulls back from Saro's lips and looks down at her, his face worried.

"Something wrong?" he asks with concern. She looks at him for a long moment before she speaks.

"Leon…are you…bored with me or…something?" she asks hesitantly. Leon's brows shoot up before he throws his head back and laughs, giving Saro a start.

"What?! You and I just get done with that and you think I'm bored with you?" he says before he starts laughing again. She gives him a peevish glare and he starts to calm himself. "Saro, I'm not bored with you, in any way. Hell, I can't even remember what life was like before you showed up at my door." He says with a soft smile. His words succeed in making her smile softly, but her mind is still full of questions.

"Alright," she says quietly. She reaches up and pulls him back down for a soft kiss and she moans when she feels his tongue scrape against hers. They kiss for a few minutes before Leon pulls back from the kiss.

"I'm gonna check on something before bed. I'll be right back," Leon says as he places a kiss on her forehead and crawls from the bed. Saro eyes him curiously as he gets up and leaves the room. _What could he be checking on?_ After he leaves the room and she faintly hears his footsteps become quieter, she quietly gets up from the bed, pulls on her pajama pants and a shirt, and creeps down the hallway. She reaches the top of the stairs and sees him at the bottom. He goes towards the front door and she watches him quietly. She watches curiously as he fiddles with the handle and lock on the door before he turns and disappears towards the kitchen. Saro quickly and quietly goes down the steps, being sure to keep herself hidden. When she gets to the bottom she peers through the dark with her keen eye-sight and sees Leon doing the same thing to the screen door that leads to the pool. She jerks backwards when she sees him turn back towards the stairs and then listens to his footsteps. She hears him move towards where the hallway that leads to Lily's room should be and she peeks around to confirm it, sure enough, he's going down the hallway that leads underneath the stairs.

Her mind goes through several different scenarios as she rounds the stairs and goes along the wall and peeks down the hallway. She knows he wouldn't be up to anything wrong but she can't help but let her mind jump from one possibility to the next. She can still see Leon as clearly as day, despite the darkness. He moves down the hall till he reaches Lily's room and Saro's heart nearly drops when he reaches for the handle. At first she starts to move so that she can tackle him, but then stops when she sees that when he tries to turn the knob, she hears a metallic clicking as she handle refuses to move. He does this several times and even pushes lightly against the door, as if making sure it is shut properly. He then nods in satisfaction and turns to come back down the hall. Saro Instantly starts to rush back and up the stairs, the years of hunting practice with her parents paying off as she makes it back to the top of the stairs without making a sound. She steps into the bathroom of her room and closes the door behind her.

Her mind races with new questions as she leans against the closed door. Why was he checking the doors? Why would he check Lily's door specifically? Why is Lily's door even locked to begin with? Saro shakes her head to calm herself, there is no reason to ponder all these useless questions. _Surely Leon has a reason_ , Saro thinks to herself. However, that only raises another question in her mind: what is his reason?

* * *

Saro wakes up with the smell of something delicious filling her nose. She opens her eyes slowly and stretches her back and legs. She then becomes aware of her missing boyfriend who had slept next to her last night but doesn't think twice about it, the savory smell is no doubt coming from whatever Leon has made for breakfast. Judging by the smell, Saro can tell he has bacon frying, something that requires cinnamon, and gravy. She smiles warmly as she throws the covers off herself and crawls out of bed. She makes her way down stairs, following the savory smell, but instantly goes cold when she walks into the kitchen.

She sees Leon, dressed in a pair of pajama shorts and a loose fitting T-shirt, standing at the stove like any other morning, only he's not alone. Lily is also in the kitchen, standing at the sink as she cracks and pulls the shells off of boiled eggs with her hands and even her tentacle hair. Leon turns to see her and gives her a soft smile, but she can't bring herself to return it.

"Good morning." Leon says and Lily turns to as well and, surprisingly, Lily actually makes eye contact.

"Good morning, Saro." Lily says, her voice seeming to be almost upbeat, but just barely. Lily turns back to peeling the eggs but Saro can't help but stare at Lily with a mixture of confusion, shock, and extreme bitterness. Leon had never let Saro or Serena help him cook. Of course Saro didn't really know how to cook unless instructions were printed on the package and Serena was not much better but seeing Lily there, helping Leon with his normally dominated area sets Saro's blood on fire.

"Saro, you okay?" Leon asks, giving her a worried look. She mentally curses as she's sure her eyes have dilated to their vertical shape, something they only do when she's about to fight or angry. She takes a second to compose herself, there's nothing wrong with Lily helping him cook. If anything it can only be seen as beneficial and means nothing more than their new household member helping out. When Saro looks at Leon again she's sure that her eyes are normal again.

"I'm fine." She says, her voice cool and equal. Leon looks at her for another moment before he turns back to the stove. Saro takes her place at the kitchen table and watches as the two of them cook breakfast. "So Lily, I didn't know you could cook." Saro says. Lily turns to make eye contact with Saro again, her octopus-like eyes alien but complimenting to the Scylla soft face.

"A little. My last host showed me how to cook a few things, nothing major though." She says while her tentacle hair finishes de-shelling the eggs. She then places the last few eggs in a bowl while she takes the plastic bag she was using to collect the shells out of the sink and throws it away. Saro can't help but be shocked by the new openness from Lily, yesterday she had been very reserved and the slightest mention of her former homestay made her nervous and uneasy. Saro looks at Leon out of the corner of her eye, wondering if he'd done something to make her become more open.

* * *

"These eggs are great!" Serena says as she takes another bite. The Dragonewt is dressed in one of her favorite, fluffy robes with a heated blanket around her shoulders, the tips of her wings poking out from under the blanket. Saro nods in agreement, the eggs are very good, Lily had added a little hot sauce to them with a touch of salt to give them flavor. Along with Leon's cooking the entire meal is excellent.

"I'm glad you like them." Lily says as she eats her own food beside Serena, across the table from Saro and Leon.

"Maybe now I won't have to cook every day." Leon says with a smile as he takes another bite. Saro cuts him a look out of the corner of her eye.

"You could ask me or Serena to cook, you know." Saro says more coldly than she means to. Serena laughs at that.

"Uh, no. I tried to make toast one day when I was back home, almost smoked me and my parents out of our cave." Serena says. To everyone's surprise, Lily actually giggles and it causes the Dragonewt to turn and stare at the Scylla. Lily quickly notices and Saro doesn't miss how her hair start to draw around her face.

"What? Did I do something weird?" Lily asks nervously. Serena shakes her head and smiles at her.

"No, I'm sorry. I just hadn't heard you laugh before now. Caught me off guard." Serena says and Lily's hair starts to loosen and return to their former state.

"Oh, okay." She says and Serena giggles again.

"So Lily, since you're being more open with us today, tells us more about you." Serena says and Lily looks around at three of them nervously.

"Well…what would you like to know?" Lily asks quietly.

"Are you a virgin?" Serena asks bluntly. Lily's eyes go wide as her face turns the same shade of red as her hair, which causes Serena to burst out laughing. Leon face palms himself and Saro just shakes her head.

"Wh-what kind of question is that?!" Lily asks, the tips of her hair curling upwards, showing of the rows of suction cups on the underside.

"I guess we should have warned you." Leon asks, running the palm of his hand down his face.

"Yeah, Serena likes to get a rise out of people, usually by asking inappropriate questions. The best thing you can do is just not let it get to you." Saro says. Lily covers her face with her hands and Serena continues to laugh.

"Come on Lily. It's our initiation for the household." Serena says. Leon and Saro pin her with a curious look and she just laughs. "Oh hush you two, you know what I mean." Serena says before she looks at Lily again. "Come on Lily. I won't leave you alone until you tell me so you may as well give in." Lily stays absolutely still for over a minute. Finally, Lily gives the slightest hint of a nod. "Good girl." Serena says and Lily finally takes her hands down from her face.

"If you'll excuse me, I'm going to hide in my room." Lily says, pushing herself up from the table. Before she can stand up completely, Serena's tail snakes up and wraps itself around Lily's waist. The Scylla gives an _eep_ sound as Serena pulls her back into her chair.

"Nope." Serena says with a mischievous grin. Lily tries to push herself back up as hard as her leg-tentacles will allow her but the Dragonewt's tail is too strong. When she finally realizes the futility of the situation she slumps back into the chair, her face still glowing red.

Saro laughs at the goofy exchange, any suspicious feelings towards Lily now gone. She looks at Leon with a soft smile and he returns it, the soft look in his eyes melting her. Leon wouldn't betray her, he's just being friendly, hospitable like any good host.

"So Lily, do you prefer men or women?" Serena asks spontaneously which only makes Lily's face go even darker, causing Leon, Saro, and Serena laugh.

* * *

The four of them are laughing, the Dragonewt said something that obviously embarrassed Lily. He'd hunted her for what seemed like ages now. He'd tracked her scent all the way from Florida, not an easy thing to do when you have to travel by your own means. It doesn't matter, he's found her, and when he's done he'll take her away and leave the other three dead in a pile. Lily is _his_ and only his. No one, not even the damned government will keep her from him.

He retreats deeper into the trees that grow thickly around the host's property. The host won't see him coming, none of them will. No fucking human can hurt him. He's a beast, and beasts kill humans with little effort. The Dragonewt and the Jinko will be annoying but they'll die too, women are weak, just like his Lily. He'll have to punish her for what she did, but he'll forgive her, and then they will be happy again.


	11. Chapter 11

**Okay, its been a while since I've posted anything. I'm sorry for that. Work has taken up most of my time and my internet access is practically nonexistent right now. I'll try to have more chapters up soon. Thank you**

* * *

Chapter 11

"Come on Lily; boys or girls? It's not that big a deal." Serena says as Lily shakes her head, burring her face in her hands.

"Serena, perhaps that's too personal a question?" Leon suggests from across the table. Serena scratches at her chin with one of her black claws.

"Fine…I guess you might be right," Serena says, still scratching at her chin as she thinks of something else to ask Lily. "So, Lily, you had another homestay before you came here?" Serena asks, her tail still wrapped around Lily's waist in case the Scylla tries to escape her questions again. Serena doesn't miss how her hair-tentacles draw closer around her face but leave most of it visible.

"Y-yeah. I lived with a young man and his mother in California." Serena's golden eyes light up at the mention of the state.

"You lived in California!?" Serena latches onto Lily's shoulders and turns her so that they are face to face, Serena's golden eyes wild with excitement. "Did you live by the beach? Was your host hot? Did you ever see any hot guys while you were there? Did you ever go clubbing or shopping or…?" Serena shakes Lily back and forth as she bombards the Scylla with a tirade of frantic questions.

"Serena! Chill out!" Leon yells over her questions. Serena looks at him in surprise and then back to Lily; who has gone limp in Serena's hands, her eyes rolling and shifting side to side in a dazed fashion.

"Mon Dieu! I'm so sorry Lily. I got excited." Serena leans Lily against the back of her chair and unwraps her tail from Lily's hips. Her head sways from side to side for a moment before her vision clears.

"I take i-it that you like C-California?" Lily asks shakenly and its Serena's turn to blush.

"A little. When I was younger, I would always watch movies set in California. To me the place is like a fairy tale." She says uncharacteristically shy for her normally composed and confident demeanor. Leon and Saro look at each other with a brow raised, not used to the shy side of their normally unrestrained roommate. To Leon, Saro, and Serena's surprise, they hear the faintest resemblance of a giggle come from Lily.

"Well, California is a very beautiful place. And very hot too. I bet you'd love it there." Lily says with a soft smile that brightens up her whole face. Serena smiles back and the two of them start giggling to themselves.

"So, come on, what about your old host? Was he a hottie? Or did you have someone else?" Serena asks, the old, no-verbal-filter Dragonewt that they had come to know returning. Serena doesn't miss how Lily's octopus-like eyes seem to fill with sadness at the question. She looks back down at her plate before answering.

"My host was a good-looking man but there was nothing special between us." She says. Serena's curiosity is begging her to press the question but she can tell that something about California is painful for her, and while Serena can be persistent she isn't cruel. Deciding to turn the discussion away from her past, Serena thinks of another line of questions that might be more fun for everyone.

"Okay, so he wasn't your type. What kind of men _are_ you into?" Serena says with an evil grin. Lily turns back to her with a blushing, innocent face that makes Serena just want to eat the adorable Scylla up.

"Wh-what do you mean 'my type'?"

"You know what I mean. What kind of guys do you go after? Do you like the tall, dark, and mysterious guys, intellectuals, artsy guys; give me something to work with." Serena then leans closer to whisper in her ear. "Do you prefer them small, medium, or _magnum_?" Serena asks and Lily draws back, her face burning red as she lets out a loud _eep_ sound. She shakes her head vigorously, her face buried in her hands again as Serena leans back to howl with laughter.

"Alright Serena, that's enough. No reason to kill her with embarrassment; she hasn't been here long enough for that." Saro says from across the table, giggling to herself. Serena regains control of herself as Lily peeks out of her hands, her face still molten.

"So, I have a question," Saro says from her side of the table. "What are we going to do today?" Serena and Leon look at each other and back to Saro, unsure what to say.

"That is a good question." Leon says as he places a hand of his chin. Serena scratches behind her ear as she tries to think of something to do. Being that Serena must wrap up more than the rest of the household there isn't much she can do while not wrapped up in a scarf and a warm jacket. _Screw you, Nature. It would be nice not to have to be swaddled while everyone else can go in shorts and T-shirts_ , Serena thinks to herself.

"Well, whatever we do, can it please be somewhere where there is heating. I'd rather not hibernate if I can avoid it." Serena says, wrapping her electric blanket back around her shoulders. Leon nods, understanding her dilemma.

"How 'bout this: since Lily is the new comer let's give her the decision." Leon says and everyone turns to Lily who blushes a little more when she feels everyone's eyes on her.

"Wh-what? I don't know what to do?" she says.

"Anything you want. We could go see a movie, go to the park, it's still warm enough to swim so we could go sw-. Wait, can Scylla swim in freshwater?" Leon asks midway through his suggestions.

"I can, most marine Extraspecies persons are actually euryhaline." Lily explains.

"Eury-what now?" Serena asks and Leon laughs at her confused expression.

"It means they can swim in fresh water and salt water," Leon explains. Serena lets out a silent 'oh' and settles back in her chair. "So, how 'bout that? Anyone feel like taking a hike to a swimming hole?" Leon asks. Serena makes a heavy sigh.

"If we have to go outside, can we go to the park instead? That way I can at least sun myself?" Serena says, looking out the kitchen window at the clear sky. Leon raises a brow at her sullen tone.

"I mean we don't _have_ to. We can do something else, something that won't cause you to pass out." Leon says.

"No, it's fine. At least if we go to the park I can run around to warm up or just let the sun bake me. I should be fine like that," Serena explains.

"Also, will Lily be able to keep up with us at the park? Being that, well, she doesn't have 'legs'?" Saro asks curiously.

"I can. My tentacles aren't that sensitive. Plus, I have these special leggings upstairs that protect my tentacles from hot surfaces." Lily explains. Both Leon and Saro arch a brow at the information.

"Alright, then that settles it. Let's say we all head out at noon?" Leon suggests and everyone nods in agreement, only Serena seeming less pleased with the plan than everyone else. She hates how she must be the one in sweaters and pants while everyone else is in summer clothing, even though it is still summer. But, with the South Carolina heat she should be able to shed a few layers after she heats up enough.

* * *

Twelve o'clock arrives and Leon comes down stairs to the living room to find his three guests dressed and ready to go. Saro is dressed in a light green shirt that hugs her body closely and a pair of khaki capris. Lily is dressed in a white button-up shirt with a short plaid skirt over the black leggings she had mentioned earlier that cover her tentacles entirely. Serena is dressed warmly in a pair of cream colored pants and a dark blue jacket, her wings poking out through the special holes cut in the back for them. Leon is dressed in a pair of cargo shorts and one of his basketball shirts that show off his arms.

"Alright everyone, le-" Leon starts as his phone starts to ring. He pulls it out to see that it is Ms. Hilary. "It's Ms. Hilary, just a sec." he says and they all nod before they make their way into the garage to wait for him as he answers the call.

"Good afternoon Mr. Williams. Everything going well with Lily?"

"Yeah, so far so good." Leon says reassuringly.

"Good, I didn't think anything would happen this early but this is a special case." Ms. Hilary says and Leon nods. "Anyway, I have one more prevision on the way. A special agent from Japan who has dealt with similar kinds of Extraspecies persons like this one. She should arrive before dark." Leon nods happily at the news. His uncle had been furious when Ms. Hilary had told him about Lily's situation and the danger Ms. Hilary put them in by placing her with Leon. However, once Ms. Hilary had told him the circumstances Leon didn't hesitate to accept the responsibility.

"Good to hear. Until then, I'll keep my eyes open."

"Good. Remember Mr. Williams, this kind of Extraspecies person is dangerous and you must make sure not to fight. If worse comes to worse, run." She warns through the phone. Leon chuckles at her warning. Leon knows that besides the fact that he could get himself killed, it's against the law for humans and Extraspecies persons to fight. That's why the exchange Program created special teams of Extraspecies persons to handle troublesome cases such as this.

"Ms. Hilary, I don't know if you haven't figured out, but I don't back down from fights. Even if this one is dangerous I'm not afraid to lock horns with 'em. And I'm not afraid to go down fighting either," Leon says in bitter amusement. He's not one for bravado; as he proved several weeks ago with the thugs at the park, but he likes to get his point across. Leon is not afraid to fight, even if the opponent is twice his size. Ms. Hilary sighs heavily through the phone.

"I've noticed. Just be careful. I shall leave you to it, Mr. Williams. Have a good day." She says right before hanging up.

* * *

Leon pulls his Jeep into the parking lot and kills the engine. He looks at Saro and Lily in the back seat of his Jeep and smiles at Saro, who smiles back warmly. _If I get any more people in my house, I'm gonna need a freaking limo just to drive them around_ , Leon thinks to himself as he and the girls get out of the car. After Leon and Saro secure the Frisbee and the few other items Leon brought: a picnic blanket, a cooler of snacks and drinks, and a few other things for them to play with, the four make their way to the grassy area of the park where Leon sets out the blanket and cooler.

He watches as Lily's tentacles pull her along the grass with ease, surprised at how easily the aquatic liminal can keep up with them on land. After Leon sets out the blanket, Serena flops down on the blanket to lay on her stomach, her wings stretched out wide, taking up most of the blanket.

"You guys can do whatever. I need to soak up this sun before I get too cold." She says, Leon even noticing that her wings seem to be shivering ever so slightly. It sometimes amazes him just how different he is to Serena and the others; here Serena is shivering while Leon is already started sweating. Not to mention that Leon is dressed for the South Carolina heat while Serena is dressed as if she's out on a cool autumn's evening.

Dismissing the thoughts, Leon turns to the large, blue bag that he brought and opens it to view the contents: a football, the Frisbee, four baseball gloves and a few baseballs. Leon takes out the Frisbee and holds it up for the three girls to see.

"Feel like throwing this around for a bit?" Leon asks, Saro and Lily nodding.

"You guys go ahead. I'm already starting to feel a little cold, I'm just gonna sunbathe for a bit." Serena says as she makes her way to the picnic blanket. The three of them nod and leave the Dragonewt to herself. Leon smiles and tosses the disk to Saro before he takes off across the grass. After he reaches a good distance, Saro throws the disk and he catches it easily before throwing it to Lily. Leon curses as he accidently throws it high, only for Lily to reach up and catch it, her tentacles extending her well over six feet in the air with plenty of length to spare. _Damn_ , Leon thinks to himself. Again, he forgets just how different he is to them, but he doesn't think about it much as Lily tosses the Frisbee back in his direction and he runs to catch it.

* * *

Lily laughs as Saro throws the disk too wide for Lily to catch with her hands, but she manages to catch it with one of her tentacles. Leon and Saro clap at the catch and Lily blushes slightly at the praise. She's not used to getting too much praise for something so simple, but it's nice to feel special. Wanting to show off just a little, Lily uses her tentacle to toss the disk back to Saro who catches it easily.

"Nice one, Lily!" she calls as she tosses it Leon. Lily blushes again. It has been a long time since she had received praise for anything like this; her first host had praised her a little but… Lily snaps back to the present as she realizes that Leon had thrown the disk high, only this time when she extends upwards to catch it the disk slips just out of reach. Lily watches as the disk flies across the grassy area of the park and lands on the other side of the near-by playground area. Lily looks to Leon and he gives her smile as he waves her to go get it. She nods, returning the smile before she makes her way to the playground.

The playground is surrounded by a black, plastic barrier that holds the sandy interior. Lily doesn't hesitate as she enters the playground area, the bright colored structure devoid of any sounds or activity. Lily was relieved when they arrived to see only a few other cars in the parking lot, she has never liked being in crowded places as they always made her anxious. She makes her way around the playground till she sees the blue disk she's after.

"AHHH! A sea witch is attack the castle!" a shrill, high pitched voice yells from the top of the playground. Lily jumps in surprise and looks up to the top of the playground where she sees a young girl in a pink princess dress standing, pointing in her direction.

"Who dares attack my princess?" A deeper, more threatening voice asks. Lily's heart sinks as she turns to face the origin of this other voice.

Leon looks towards the playground area, watching for Lily to return with the Frisbee when he sees a flash of long, red 'hair'. He smiles when he sees her come around of the structures of the playground, only to realize that she is waving the disk around her head in a frenzy as she pulls herself as fast as she can with her tentacles. Leon looks to Saro who nods knowingly and the two rush to their friend in distress.

"No! I'm sorry! Please go away!" Leon hears as he draws closer, watching as Lily continues to swipe at something in the air he can't see. Though, as he draws closer, he notices something flying around Lily, something that he can only assume is some large insect. Leon doesn't miss a beat as he picks up his speed to reach Lily.

"Lily what's going on?" Leon demands as he reaches her, his eyes darting around to see where the source of her distress. He throws his back to her so that he can try and defend her, though he still doesn't see it.

"So, the witch has minions I see." Leon hears a voice say in a smug, dramatized fashion, along with the hum of what he can only guess are wings. "Have at thee!" the voice calls again as Leon hears the humming get louder as something collides with Leon's cheek. Leon's eyes go wide as what feels like a tiny foot kicks him in the face, not enough to hurt by any means, but enough to aggravate him. Saro reaches them shortly after that, looking around for the aggressor. "Another one! Your numbers will not save you!" the voice calls again. Leon looks up in the direction of the voice, seeing something flying down towards Saro. Reacting on instinct, Leon lunges to meet whatever creature is attacking. He feels something slip through his fingers as something pulls one of Saro's ears roughly as it flies past her.

"Hey!" Saro says angrily as the flying creature incircles them again, its speed making it hard to track by sight. Leon listens carefully as the buzzing seems to fly around them in irregular circles. He notices as it draws closer and with another attempt, he thrusts both hands out to capture the source, his hands finding their mark.

"Ahh! Unhand me!" Leon's brow could not go any higher as he stares down at the creature in his fist: a small, thin figured man with blonde hair, long pointed ears, and long, insect-like wings. Leon also doesn't miss that he's dressed in a white shirt and leather pants with boots, the kind one would see in a medieval movie of some kind. Leon holds his hand up so that he can inspect the small, action-figure sized man as he holds him upside down. "I said unhand me you oversized baboon! I will not be manhandled by the likes of you!" The little man complains as he swings around a pink, sword shaped toothpick. Honestly the sight of the little creature would be comical if he hadn't been terrorizing his friend.

"How 'bout you explain why you were attacking my friend and I won't pop your head off like a bottle cap?" The threat was probably too severe, but Leon's patience with the little creature was finite since he had just been kicked in the face by it, not to mention the little pest had pulled Saro's ear and terrorized Lily.

"Stop!" a shrill voice calls. Leon turns to look over Lily's shoulder to see a young girl, probably around the age of six, in a pink dress with a pointed princess hat coming from the playground. "Don't hurt my knight! He was just protecting my castle, you big meanie," the girl says, receiving quizzical looks from Leon and Saro while Lily hid behind Saro, looking back and forth with confusion.

"Okay, perhaps the game went a little too far." Leon looks back to the creature in his hand. "If you'll let me go, I'll explain." Leon releases him immediately and the little man takes flight again, his wings making the same soft humming as he flies up to eye level with Leon. "Good to meet you, kind ladies and gentleman. My name is Sir Oakseer."

After Sir Oakseer introduced himself, he explained how he is an actual knight of the Fairy Kingdom of North America. The fact that there even is a Fair Kingdom of North America is enough to surprise Leon in of itself. Sir Oakseer, who allowed Leon and his friends to call him Oak, went on to explain that the young girl with him, Chloe, is the daughter of his homestay. He had been tasked by his queen to experience human culture and act as their test subject, to see if their kingdom should try and integrate with human society.

"Okay, that's all well and good. But why were you attacking Lily?" Leon crosses his arms, wanting his explanation. The fairy raises his hands apologetically.

"I thought she was playing along with the game. Chloe loves to play princess, especially since she has an actual knight to play with her. When Ms. Lily ran I thought she was doing so as part of the game. Most people who see her just simply play along and go about their business." Oak flies over to Lily, the Scylla backing away slightly, still untrustworthy of the Fairy. "Please accept my apology, madam. I had no intentions of harming you." Oak steadies himself in midair so that he can bow respectively to Lily, his left hand placed on the hilt of his sheathed 'sword' on his hip.

Lily looks to Saro for reassurance and the Tigress nods with a half-smile, letting her know that she is fine. Lily nods and turns her attention back to the Fairy. "Thank you for your apology. I will say that you are fierce knight to be reckoned with." The Fairy raises up from his bow and solutes to her with a fist over his heart.

"The fiercest, M'lady." He says and Lily can't help but giggle at the stern, yet small figure floating before her. Leon smiles at them, glad to have settled that.

"Oak, Chloe, is everything okay?" a voice calls and the group turns to see a woman rounding the playground area.

"Hi mommy," Chloe calls and the woman smiles as she comes to join the group.

"I see you two made some friends," the woman says.

Chloe's mother, Kayla, is a young woman with dark brown hair and hazel eyes, same as her daughter's, only her hair is cut short to fall just below her ears. Leon and his homestays introduce themselves, surprised to meet another host for the Exchange Program.

"I know," Kayla says. "I didn't know anyone else in town was hosting any Extraspecies persons. Glad to see I'm not alone in it." Kayla says.

"I hear ya," Leon begins. "I hadn't seen anyone else hosting in town, and our coordinator didn't mention anyone else."

"You mean Ms. Hilary?" Kayla asks.

"Ms. Clumsy," Chloe says, causing Oak to snicker in a very, unknightly fashion. Kayla gives her daughter a motherly look.

"Chloe, what did I say about saying mean things." Chloe puts her hands behind her back and pouts at her mother's soft scolding.

"But it's true," Chloe says under her breath. Leon can't help but smile at the little girl's words, agreeing wholeheartedly. Kayla shakes her head at her daughter's words with a motherly smile.

After introductions, Oak, Saro, Lily and Chloe go back to the playground area to restart Chloe's game of Princess. Shortly after, Serena comes to introduce herself and to join in; having been warmed up by the sun and feeling energetic enough to join in the fun. Kayla and Leon choose to watch from outside the playground's barrier to talk amongst themselves. It felt good for the two to have someone to talk to about being a host. Sir Oak is Kayla's only homestay, but being a single mother, she is still in charge of the household. Leon had never had anyone to oversee, let alone a house of Extraspecies Persons, so it feels good to have someone he can relate to on the matter, even in a small way.

"So, it's just the four of you?" Kayla asks and Leon nods.

"Yeah. I got dragged into the position by my uncle. But, I can't complain too much. The girls are great friends and I love having them around." Leon smiles as he watches Oak and Saro chase Serena around the playground as Lily holds Chloe in her tentacles as a makeshift thrown.

"I know the feeling. Oak is a wonderful playmate for Chloe. He's a lot older than me, but he loves playing with her. He says he wants to have children one day so he sees it as practice." She smiles as she watches the group as well. Kayla explains that she's a graphic designer for a company in a different state, which allows her to stay at home, but means that she must stay at her computer to finish her work and can't play with her daughter whenever she wants to. Leon looks over to Saro and his other homestays, a warm feeling growing in his chest as she watches them play. If not for Saro, Serena, and now Lily, there's no telling where he'd be; most likely still in his house, cooped up with his grief still. But with them, he's rediscovered what it is to have friends, to have romance…

"I guess we both just needed them."

"It was wonderful meeting you, Mr. Williams." Kayla shakes Leon's hand again, before turning to her daughter, who is playing with Lily's 'hair' as she, Saro, Serena, and Oak laugh at the young girl's fascination. "Chloe, we have to go home now. Say bye to everyone." Kayla says with a smile. Chloe pouts at her mother but doesn't argue. The little girl thrusts forward to hug Lily's sizable chest, surprising the Scylla, but she returns the hug warmly before the girl moves to hug Saro and then Serena. Kayla turns back to Leon as their respective groups exchange goodbye's

"If you ever need anything, you be sure to let me know," Kayla says, having given Leon her number a few moments earlier. Leon nods thankfully, glad he has someone else to look to for help with being a homestay.

"Thanks. And you can just call me Leon. And the same goes to you, us hosts should stick together," he says and she laughs. Chloe and the homestays gather around Kayla and Leon as they finish their goodbyes. Oak flies over to Leon's level and solutes to him respectfully. Leon returns the solute with mutual respect for the tiny, winged knight.

"I hope you will take good care of these fine ladies, sire?" Oak asks in his seemingly natural, overdramatized manor. Leon laughs good-naturedly at the Fairy and nods.

"Of course, that's my job after all." The Fairy nods satisfied and flies to hover over Kayla's shoulder as the mother picks up her child, the girl waving to Leon and his homestays and the three make their way to Kayla's vehicle as Leon and his group do the same.

"She was so cute." Serena says from the back seat of Leon's jeep.

"She was, I think Chloe liked Lily most though," Saro says from the passenger seat as Leon drives them back towards his house, the sun still up but slowly making its way down as the sky starts to turn from blue to gold with the approaching evening hours. The group had to make their way home before the temperature dropped any lower and cause Serena to fall into hibernation. He has the heat on full blast now just to make sure she is warm, even though it is still comfortable outside for all the warm-blooded individuals.

"W-what do you mean?" Lily asks, caught off guard by Saro's statement.

"Because out of us three, you're the one who looks most like a princess, with the whole Little-Mermaid-look you have there." Saro says, pointing to Lily's tentacles. Serena laughs and Lily covers her blushing face with her hair, embarrassed by the compliment. Saro laughs as Leon pulls into the driveway of his home. He pulls into the garage and the four exit the vehicle, Serena making a beeline for the entrance into the house, being that the garage doesn't have any kind of heating and the cooler evening air had already started to get to the Dragonewt. Leon takes their supplies from the back of his jeep and setting them aside before following Saro and Lily into the house. Just as Leon enters the house, the front door of his home flies off the hinges, the sound of wood splintering and metal ringing echoes through the room; glass, wood, and metal rain across the marble floor of the entry way.

Serena and Lily scream while Leon and Saro drop into their fighting stances. Leon, out of the four of them, had been waiting for this. A figure makes its way into the house, just over six feet tall with long arms, and a long, fur covered tail. Dressed in a jacket that is left open to show his fur-covered torso and a pair of dirty jeans, the creature eyes the four of them angrily, but only one of them has his full attention. "It's time to go, Lily."

Lily goes stock stiff at the sight of the figure, ever since she had left California she had hoped that she would never see him again. "She's not going anywhere." Leon says, getting a surprised look from everyone else in the room as he walks across the room to stand in front of Lily. The intruder glares at Leon with dark, angry brown eyes.

"This doesn't concern you, punk. Mind your own business!" The intruder snarls, flexing his long, fur covered fingers.

"Actually, it does. Lily is my homestay and under my protection. Also, you just kicked in my door and tore up my entryway, so I'm going to personally see to it that your ass is tanned." Leon says, not showing any fear to the creature standing in his door way.

"Um, Leon," Serena says from the living room. "Do you know this guy?"

"Kinda. This is Chu, a Kakuen from northern China. He was a homestay with Lily back in California. He is also Lily's ex-boyfriend. Ex-abusive-boyfriend from what I've heard." Leon explains. Serena and Saro gasp at the new information, but their surprise is short lived as they eye Chu with a new-found grudge and move to flank Leon.

Leon had been waiting for Chu to make his move, ever since Ms. Hilary had warned him about the ape-man the day before. She had said that Kakuen were known for being strong and ill-tempered when provoked, but Leon wasn't afraid. Leon didn't like abusive assholes who thought they could hurt the people who they're supposed to care about, just because they can. The idea of it makes him sick.

Chu glares at the three standing before him and looks back to Lily who is still frozen in fear by the sight him. "Lily, I said it's time to leave!" he screams this time.

"She's not going anywhere, banana-nuts!" Serena screams back. Chu's vision goes red at the insult and charges, running towards the three in an ape-like fashion, his long arms hitting the ground with his knuckles and carrying his body forward.

"Get Lily to my room," Leon commands as he rushes forward to meet Chu. Saro follows Leon While Serena grabs Lily by the hand and leads her up the steps as fast as she can. Chu lets out a screech, his elongated canines bared as he prepares to attack, his arms raised to bring down on Leon. Leon takes the opening and drives a superman punch to the Kakuen's abdomen. While many Extraspecies persons are much stronger and more durable than humans, Kakuen's aren't even close to the top of that list. Ms. Hilary had told him how they are stronger and more maneuverable that humans, but they were just as durable, which means that it wouldn't be much different that fighting a larger human being.

Chu is thrown back from Leon's attack, the Kakuen surprised by the force of Leon's strike as he falls to the ground and rolls to recover, he hadn't known that the human could fight. Before Chu can retaliate, Saro rushes him with her claws, going for his face and throat. Chu reacts and jumps back to avoid her attacks, only to have Leon come from his side with a round house kick, leaving him dazed and open for a scissor kick from Saro.

The Kakuen growls as Saro's attack sends him to the floor. The fact that he is being tossed around by a woman and a human makes him sick; he's stronger than them and yet they dare put their hands on him. He jumps up from the floor and rushes to Leon first and comes in with a right hook. Leon ducks and throws a flurry of punches to his chest and stomach, the ape-man grunting in pain with each strike. The enraged Chu doesn't blink as he brings both arms up to hammer down on Leon in one, solid attack. Leon falls to his knees from the force of the attack, feeling as if he had been hit by a sledgehammer. Stunned by the attack, he doesn't react in time as Chu then kicks him with enough force to lift him from the ground and toss him across the room to land at the foot of the stairs.

Saro watches as Leon falls at the foot of the stairs, her heart shattering at the sight of him. Her vision going red, she snarls at the Kakuen and lunges for him. Chu can't react fast enough to evade the enraged Jinko as she swipes him across the chest with her claws, blood, fur and torn fabric flying from his body before she kicks him out of the shattered doorway. She doesn't hesitate as she chases after her prey with an intent to kill.

"Leon!" Leon blinks as he hears Serena call out to him and looks up to see her coming down the stairs to pick him up, the force of Chu's attack had knocked him unconscious for a few seconds. Leon looks around weakly, wanting to know where Chu went. He sees that the entryway is empty, Serena is now at his side as she lifts him to lean against the wall, Lily is nowhere in sight, brought up to his room by Serena, and Saro... He panics when he realizes Saro is gone and tries his best to get up. His first instinct is to find them and help Saro fight, but he realizes that he can't continue in his condition, at least not without a weapon.

"Serena, I need, I need to get to my closet," he says weakly as the Dragonewt helps him to his feet. With Serena's help he manages to make it up the stairs and get to his bed where he finds Lily curled against the wall, crying.

"It's okay, Lily." Leon says weakly as he makes it to the bed. Lily looks up and her eyes widen at the sight of him, covered in bruises and blood dripping from a cut under his hairline.

"Leon," she says breathlessly as she slides to the end of the bed with concern. Leon tries to move himself to the other side of the bed to his closet, Lily and Saro assisting him. "Leon I'm so sorry. This is all my fault." Lily says with tears rolling down her face.

"It's not. It's Chu's, and I'm gonna make sure he pays out the ass for this." Leon says as he pushes himself up and limps to the other side of the bed to enter his closet, leaving Lily and Serena at his bedside.

"Leon are you crazy? You're already hurt enough as it is." Serena says, following him into the closet.

"I know," Leon says from the closet from the end of the closet, the cabinet at the end open wide. When he walks back out, Lily and Serena stare at him in surprise as Leon loads the first of his shells.

Saro ducks a side kick from Chu as she swings around for another slash with her claws, satisfied when the Kakuen cries out in pain as she tears through his flesh. This bastard had hurt Leon, the man who makes her feel special, the man who makes her happy, and she's going to make him pay for it in blood.

Chu ignores the pain as he swings around and charges at Saro again, jumping into the air and landing on his muscular tail so that he can kick at Saro with both feet before coming down with his fists. Saro figured out quickly that Chu isn't a trained fighter, his strength and ferocity being the only true factors of his fighting ability, unfortunate for him. Saro dodges his attack and then steps in close before driving a flip kick straight into the ape-man's lower jaw. He cries out as Saro lands on her hands and feet and rushes forward again to drive a straight kick into his chest that sends him rolling across the front yard. The Kakuen regains his feet, his durability enough to surprise Saro; his breathing heavy and blood dripping from his lip along with the multiple claw wounds on his arms, chest and back.

Chu spits blood onto the grass and racks Saro with a disgusted glare. "You bastards, just had to let me leave with Lily. That's all you had to do, and you shit all over it. Lily is mine! She belongs to me!" Saro shakes her head at the delusional outburst. She doesn't even acknowledge them with a reply as she slowly makes her way across the yard to continue her monkey-thrashing, her gate casual and calm as she tries to show Chu just how casual she is about tearing him apart. Chu snarls again before charging and Saro lets out a growl before moving to meet him.

The two make it within several feet of each other when a loud _bang_ goes off, halting the two in their tracks. They look to the source of the noise to see Leon standing several feet away, pointing a shotgun into the air, Serena and Lily on either side of him. Leon brings the weapon down to point at Chu as he cocks the lever and readies his next shot. "You take one step closer to Saro and so help me I'll blow you straight to Hell." Leon says, his voice steady and calm despite his shaken and wounded appearance. Chu looks at the gun with fear, but smirks as he remembers the laws.

"You can't hurt me. The law forbids it. You'll probably go to jail anyway after you already atta-augh!" Leon cuts Chu off by firing the weapon and clipping one of Chu's ears with one of the solid slugs, the tip of the Kakuen's ear now having a bloody, crescent shape carved into the top of it. The ape-man screams in pain as he clutches at the wounded ear.

"I don't give a fuck," Leon calls as he cocks the weapon again. "You're on my property and have attacked me and my friends. As far as I'm concerned, this is self-defense. And if I do go to jail, it'll be for killing your stupid ass." Chu looks up at Leon now, realizing that the human in front of him means to kill him, consequences be damned. He then looks to Lily, standing at Leon's side, the same fear in her eyes that he is used to seeing there.

"Lily, come with me. We can start over. We can make this work." He says, offering her one of his fur covered, blood soaked hands, his voice almost pleading. Lily looks at him with tears in her eyes. She remembers when they first met in California, their homestay, Josh and his mother, Janice, had been so kind. They had showed Chu and her so many things and had made life in their home enjoyable. It was where she first learned what it was to love someone. Chu had been kind and considerate when they first became lovers. She had been happy, but then something had changed with him, he became jealous and possessive. Instead of complimenting her as he always did in the beginning he would be harsh and criticizing of everything she did. He even tried to force himself on her…Luckily, Josh had heard her cry for help and had tried to fight Chu off her. Chu had attacked Josh, putting him in the hospital, but Lily had called the police and Chu had run from the house. It was then that she had been moved to stay with Leon.

Lily looks at Chu, wishing that she were still looking at the sweet Kakuen that she had fallen for in California. But he isn't, and she is tired of being the same Scylla who lets him dictate her life. "Chu," Lily says and everyone turns to look at her, surprised by her speaking up. Her tentacles pull back from her face to show her eyes, still flowing with tears, but they show no fear now, only anger. "I want you to leave my friends alone. And leave me alone as well. I'm done with you. And truthfully, if you were to die right here in front of me, I wouldn't care in the slightest. You've become so cold and I'm tired of being frost bitten when you touch me." She says, her words as stern and harsh as her glare at him. Chu and everyone else are surprised by her stern words, but Chu grits his teeth in response to her which Leon answers by raising his weapon again, ready to take the Kakuen's life.

Chu takes one step forward only to suddenly stop. Leon looks at the ape-man in confusion when he notices what looks like a dart sticking out of his neck. His eyes then widen as several more fly forward and puncture into his arm, chest and hip. His eyes then roll upwards and he falls backwards onto the grass. Leon and his homestays stare incredulously at the incapacitated ape-man. Leon then looks to his right where a woman is standing, dressed in a black and orange combat suit, holding a pair of machine guns and a cocky grin decorating her stitch-covered face.

"Well, that was exciting while it lasted."

Shortly after Chu had been taken down, the authorities arrived, along with Ms. Hilary and even Leon's uncle, Sebastian. Chu was taken into custody immediately while Leon and the others were taken to the hospital to have Leon's wounds looked after. Surprisingly, Leon suffered minimal damage, despite a few severe bruises and a bump on the head.

"I'm glad you all are safe." Ms. Hilary says as the group stands around Leon's hospital bed. While the doctors said Leon would be fine, they couldn't believe that Leon wasn't in a more severe condition. Chu had been strong and should have at least broken a few of Leon's bones in the fight. They couldn't deny that he was fine, but wanted to have him stay the night for observation. "I'm also very angry that you didn't listen to my warning."

Leon shrugs nonchalantly, "I don't back down from fights, especially against a guy like that." Ms. Hilary shakes her head but doesn't press the issue.

"You should be lucky that I was able to talk you out of being arrested. Humans and Extraspecies persons are prohibited from fighting, no exceptions. However, with the circumstances and Chu already having a warrant for his arrest, I was able to get you off the hook." Ms. Hilary explains and Leon and everyone else thanks her, again.

"Ah, come on agent Hilary. Don't be so hard on him." The newest member of their group says. The red haired, bicolor-eyed zombie girl leans against Leon's bed and gives him a thumbs-up. "I say you did good, kid. I like the way you shoot." Leon smiles at Zombina, the undead agent had ridden in the ambulance with him and Saro on their way to the hospital and had complimented his shooting the entire way, while also saying how she liked his choice of weaponry. After they had arrived she made sure he was taken straight to the emergency room, running ahead of his stretcher to clear the halls as they pushed him along. She then gave everyone a scare when one of her arms had fallen off, which then had to be resewn on by one of the nurses; it succeeded in giving Leon a laugh while everyone else watched in a horrified curiosity.

Ms. Hilary sighs heavily at the undead woman's overzealous attitude towards the whole thing. "Zombina, if I let them off without a scolding they might make a habit of this stuff." She says, crossing her arms. Zombina laughs before standing back up and crossing her arms.

"Oh please, this world needs more heroes in it. Everyone wants to be the safe-guy and play by the rules. We need more people who like to dust their knuckles." She says, giving Leon a wink. "Heck, I wouldn't mind having him on my team." Ms. Hilary shakes her head again as she turns for the exit.

"I'll contact you tomorrow after you get released. Please try to stay out of trouble. Zombina, you have a plane to catch. I'll let Agent Smith know it was a job well done. She says as she leaves the room. Zombina waves goodbye to everyone as she leaves.

"Well kid, you got to play hero again. I'm proud. But lay off it, else you'll give me a heart attack. I'll take them home and come get you tomorrow." Sebastian says, giving Leon a hug goodbye. Serena is the next to hug Leon goodbye as well, then steps back to let Lily say goodbye next.

"I'm so sorry, Leon. You shouldn't have gotten hurt over this." She says again, guilt hanging heavy on her shoulders. Leon places a kind hand on her arm, not wanting her to feel bad over his decision.

"Lily, I'm a fighter. If I see something wrong, I'm gonna fix it. Whether I'd have to use my head or my fists. Once Ms. Hilary told me you were in trouble, I knew I'd have to fight sooner or later; and I'm not sorry for it at all." Lily's eyes tear up again and she hugs him tightly, thankful for his protection and kindness. She lets him go and moves so that Saro can say goodbye as well. She hugs him close and kisses his cheek.

"You're too brave," she whispers to him, wishing he hadn't been in harm's way.

"Would you have me any other way?" She can't argue with him. His fighting spirit is one of the many things she's come to cherish about him. His kindness, his strength, she can't imagine him without these otherwise. She wants to kiss him deeply over the whole ordeal, but decides against it with the lack of privacy. But she decides to give Leon a reason to get home quickly tomorrow as she leans in close to his ear.

"By the way, I'm not in heat anymore." She whispers.


End file.
